The following are summaries of today's
major stories published in the Arabic press. LBCI does not edit press
digest articles for content, giving English-language readers insight
into the various views expressed in newspapers across the Arab world.
Kataeb leader Amin Gemayel told
An-Nahar
daily on Sunday that if Hezbollah suggests a memorandum of understanding, he will accept
it, adding that Hezbollah represents a large category of the Lebanese people with their
own aspirations and legitimate goals.
“We must understand them and they
must understand us and understand the Lebanese people’s fears of their approach,
practices and military arsenal.”
Gemayel considered that both camps
must soon agree on a common vision for Lebanon’s future, a future based on the
respect of the other and the conviction that only the state institutions can
achieve stability and protection for all.
On the Kataeb party and March 14 coalition’s
different positions on the Syrian crisis, Gemayel said that there are
common denominators with March 14 especially regarding solidarity with all the
peoples demanding freedom, democracy and human rights.
“We cannot sympathize with any repressive,
dictatorial regime such as the Syrian regime”, he said, adding that cooperation
is the key for building an Arab future that keeps pace with modernity and development
and gives the Arab people freedom and prosperity.
On Maronite Patriarch Beshara Rai’s
fears over the Christians in the East, Gemayel said that this is not something
new; in fact, “this fear was voiced decades ago in Bkerke and other centers in
Lebanon and the Arab World”.
Gemayel said that there will be no
meeting to restore the parliamentary majority. “We want to re-constitute this parliamentary
majority for we consider that March 14 represents the national interest and the
people’s will; it is a national trend we should protect”.
Gemayel said that his party has been
against the current government since its formation, calling for changing it. “I am not calling
for a coup, but simply for a democratic change”.
- Charbel: Clashes during yesterday’s history book
demonstration were totally unnecessary
Minister of Interior Marwan Charbel told
An-Nahar
daily Sunday that the reason behind the friction between Kataeb students and the security
forces on Saturday in Riad el Solh Square was the insistence of some participants
to move a car equipped with a radio to an area beyond the territorial limits
set for the protest. He said that two persons caused the tensed atmosphere,
adding that when an officer intervened to calm the situation, he was attacked,
sparking the reaction of some baton-holding soldiers. The security forces immediately intervened to scatter security forces and protesters.
“This incident over the history book was totally unnecessary;
I was very annoyed by what happened”, Charbel said, adding that calmness must
prevail to achieve the desired results.
Charbel said that he contacted many figures, including
MP Sami Gemayel; "everyone is being very understanding and no one
wants to add insult to injury."
The National Liberal Party leader MP Dori Chamoun told
al-Mustaqbal daily on Sunday that the students did not threaten civil peace during the
demonstration held in Riad al Solh Square Saturday in objection of the history
book project. Chamoun blamed what happened on a new officer who “sparked a
dispute, gave orders to his soldiers and should now be imprisoned.”
Chamoun said that the beating outside the Grand Serail
reminded him of the time when he was severely beaten in 1948 when he participated
in a protest in support of the Palestinian cause. “64 years have gone by but it seems
that Lebanon did not make any progress in the respect of the freedom of opinion”, he
said.
Chamoun said
that members of the Free Patriotic Movement are joining the National Liberal
Party every day, adding “General Michel Aoun lied to his people for them to follow
him; but he placed them in the bosom of Iran and Syria, which was not what they
were hoping for. When the ice melted, they went back to their roots”.
Chamoun
added that Aoun only sees what he wants to see. “We do not expect more from
him, he still wants the presidency chair so bad”.
The Commander
of the Free Syrian Army, Riyad Asaad, told
Acharq al-Awsat daily on Sunday that the
Syrian regime takes its strength from its military arsenal, compared to that of
the Free Syrian Army. However, the regime started to break down; this is proven
by the daily clashes between both parties and by the increase in the number of dissidents
within its ranks. The free Syrian Army has now 70,000 members, including 5 generals.
“We cannot
say that we are controlling entire regions, but our checkpoints are intensively
spread over 60% of the Syrian regions. We are conducting excellent military
operations while the regime’s forces are only present in military barracks. We
can enter any region we want and introduce anyone to it.”
Asaad
announced that the military operations that will be conducted in the next few
hours will be qualitative and will be a surprise to the regime. “The Free
Syrian Army only has individual and medium weapons. Choppers are being dropped
by targeting their tail, a successful idea that has already dropped six
choppers belonging to the army.