Salam on Eid al-Fitr: Captive Servicemen Case Won't Be Forgotten

Prime Minister Tammam Salam saluted on Thursday members of the army and security forces who “have fallen in defense of Lebanon,” vowing that the case of captive servicemen “will not be forgotten.”

He said in a statement on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr: “I salute our captives, who are being held by terrorist groups and urge them to remain strong.”

He congratulated the Lebanese people on the holiday and hoped that they would witness “better days of security, stability, and peace of mind.”

Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea also offered his congratulations, echoing the wishes of the premier on security and stability.

He added in a statement: “We hope the Lebanese would reach understandings among themselves and that they would set national interests above all else.”

He therefore hoped for the election of a new president as soon as possible “in order for political life in Lebanon to return to normal.”

Later on Thursday, head of the Mustaqbal Movement MP Saad Hariri congratulated the Lebanese on Eid al-Fitr, hoping that it “would be an appropriate opportunity to resort to dialogue to ease disputes among them and pave the way to ending the presidential vacuum.”

The servicemen were abducted by terrorist groups in the wake of clashes in the northeastern border town of Arsal in August.

A few of them have since been released, four were executed, while the rest remain held.

Media reports on Thursday said that General Security chief Major General Abbas Ibrahim had returned from Qatar with pledges to revive the prisoner exchange deal between the Lebanese authorities and the captors.

The negotiations over the release of the captives have reached a standstill over the jihadists' demands.

M.T.

G.K.