Hizbullah: Miqati Should Open False Witnesses File to Thaw Frigid Ties
Hizbullah MP Kamel al-Rifai said the frigid ties between the party and Premier Najib Miqati would improve only if the premier puts the so-called false witnesses issue on the cabinet’s agenda.
In remarks to pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat, al-Rifai said: “The way Miqati behaved harms his ties with his allies and partners in the government.”
The lawmaker was referring to Miqati’s announcement earlier in the week that he had transferred Lebanon’s share of funds, around $32 million, to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon that has indicted four Hizbullah members in ex-Premier Rafik Hariri’s Feb. 2005 assassination.
Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said Thursday that his party would not cause "trouble" over the premier's decision in order to preserve the national interest.
But he stressed that Miqati should allow the cabinet to discuss the false witnesses issue and refer it to the Higher Judicial Council when the government appoints its president.
Miqati should open the file so that the culprits could be held responsible, al-Rifai said.
The false witnesses have reportedly misled investigators probing Hariri’s assassination.
Hizbullah-led March 8 sources did not rule out a Syrian encouragement for Miqati to fund the STL after he threatened to resign if the cabinet failed to approve the funds.
The foreign pressure on the Assad regime over its crackdown on protestors is forcing it to hold onto the Lebanese government, which is dominated by its ally Hizbullah, the sources told Asharq al-Awsat.
The Syrian government fears that any transitional or caretaker cabinet in Lebanon would further reduce its power, they said.
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