Hezbollah urged to pull out of Syria

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Lebanese President Michel Suleiman has called on the Shia Muslim Hezbollah movement to pull its fighters out of Syria, saying any further involvement in its neighbour’s civil war would fuel instability in Lebanon.
Hezbollah armed group spearheaded the recapture of the strategic border town of Qusayr two weeks ago by forces loyal to the Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, which now appear to be preparing for an offensive in the northern city of Aleppo.
“If they take part in a battle for Aleppo, and more Hezbollah fighters are killed, it will lead to more tension,” Suleiman told the Lebanese newspaper As-Safir in an interview published on Thursday. “This should end in Qusayr, and [Hezbollah] should return home.”
The Lebanese armed group’s intervention in Syria against mainly Sunni Muslim rebels has further inflamed sectarian rivalry in Lebanon, where fighting between Alawite pro-Assad and Sunni Muslim anti-Assad gunmen in the northern city of Tripoli has killed dozens.
Since the battle for Qusayr started a month ago, there have been frequent rocket attacks on Shia areas of eastern Lebanon from suspected rebel-held areas in Syria. A previously unknown Syrian rebel faction claimed responsibility this week for killing four Shia men in the Bekaa Valley on Sunday.
Lebanon is mired in political paralysis which has forced the delay of a parliamentary election and is holding up efforts to form a cabinet. The impasse, along with the influx of half a million Syrian refugees, led former Prime Minister Fouad Siniora to appeal to Suleiman this week to act to stop “state collapse”.
Criticism of Hezbollah: Suleiman, a Maronite Christian, has become increasingly assertive in criticising Syria, which dominated its smaller neighbour militarily and politically for three decades before the outbreak of the uprising against Assad in 2011.
Lebanon’s National News Agency said Suleiman sent the Arab League a memorandum on Thursday requesting an end to Syrian violations of Lebanese sovereignty. He gave a similar note to the United Nations representative in Beirut, earlier this week.
Suleiman has spoken out against Syrian military incursions into eastern Lebanon against rebel forces, and become more open in his criticism of Hezbollah’s military support for Assad. After Israeli air raids on targets near Damascus last month, Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah’s leader, said his group would support any efforts by Syrian authorities to launch attacks on the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, seized from Syria in the 1967 war. “From the start I told them I do not accept such behaviour and I am against going to the Golan because this exposes [Hezbollah] and Lebanon to the Israeli enemy,” Suleiman said. He also voiced concern about Lebanese Sunni fighters who have crossed into Syria to join rebels trying to topple Assad.

5 COMMENTS

  1. In shaa Allah Assad army and Hezbollah will clear Syria from these dogs.and Mr president do you know that israiel is not attacking Lebanon because of Hezbollah not because of your army.long live Assad army and Hezbollah.

    • Assad and all dictators need politic teachers.They are all practicing stone age politic.Democracy is the new knigs.Who oppose this will perish.This was pradicted by the the prophet pbuh,democracy will wide practice after dictator regime.See alhadis.Assad can,t win.People are boring at him.family planning politic can,t be accepted at 20 century.On you to modernize your political view.You are at 20 century now.Not at 200 bc.

  2. we sunni will pray for syrian sunni.Before ,we pray for hizbullah ,when they fight Israel.When turn to fight inoncent sunni we will pray for sunni syria.I think prayer,for some guys.some men, is stronger tehan Assad weapons.Assad will lost.

  3. actually it is very easy to end this war. Assad steps down and open chance for Syrian people to do president election. why Hezbollah support the dictator……??… it would be better if Hezbollah uses their resources to build the welfare in Lebanon… peace…

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