Maronite Bishops: Security in Lebanon Cannot Be Achieved by Appeasing All Sides

The Maronite bishops council slammed on Wednesday the threat of assassinations against lawmakers in Lebanon, spread of arms, and the recent unrest in the northern city of Tripoli, noting that these are signs of the loss of the authority of the state.

It said in a statement after its monthly meeting: “Security cannot be established by appeasing all sides, but by taking firm action.”

It therefore demanded that officials grant “complete political” cover for the security forces in their mission to restore calm in Lebanon.

Clashes erupted over a week ago in Tripoli in light of news of the death of a number of Lebanese fighters in the Syrian border town of Tall Kalakh.

The fighters, who hail mainly from the North and who were seeking to fight alongside the Syrian opposition, were killed in an ambush set up by Syrian regime forces.

Scores of people were killed in the ensuing Tripoli clashes between the rival neighborhood of Bab al-Tabbaneh, which opposes the Syrian regime, and Jabal Mohsen, which backs it.

Addressing the parliamentary electoral law, the Maronite bishops said that a new law should enable the Lebanese people of different affiliations to gain representatives at parliament.

They demanded that a new government be formed to oversee the 2013 parliamentary elections “after an electoral law is approved through parliamentary discussions.”

“It is necessary to separate the political crisis from the functioning of constitutional institutions,” they stressed, while voicing their concern over the failure to reach an agreement over a new electoral law.

In addition, they urged all sides to adhere to the government's policy of disassociation from regional developments and respect the Baabda Declaration.

The March 14-led opposition announced in October its boycott of government-related work in light of the assassination of Internal Security Forces Intelligence Bureau head Brigadier General Wissam al-Hasan on October 19.

It did announced on Monday however that it would take part in parliamentary subcommittee meetings dedicated to discussing the parliamentary electoral law on condition that no government representative be present.