By Hussein Dakroub
BEIRUT: Prime Minister Saad Hariri reassured worried Lebanese Thursday that Lebanon would eventually be able to overcome the current political crisis over an impending indictment into the 2005 assassination of his father, former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
Meanwhile, visiting Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned that Turkey would not keep silent if Israel attacks Lebanon or the Gaza Strip.
“We assure you, for our part, that Lebanon will be fine and that the Lebanese of all political affiliations will not abandon their national unity, regardless of the escalating political rhetoric and media campaigns,” Hariri said in a speech to mark the opening of a Turkish-funded hospital for emergency medicine and burns in the southern city of Sidon. “We have chosen to live together and work together. We have chosen to unite against Israeli challenges and to address our issues through dialogue.”
Hariri said that Erdogan’s presence in Lebanon was “a message of reassurance to all the Lebanese that their country will be fine and that the loyal friends like Recep Tayyip Erdogan will not abandon their responsibilities in supporting Lebanon and its stability.”
Erdogan arrived here Wednesday on a two-day visit that culminated with the signing of an agreement establishing a free trade zone between the two countries. In a move designed to enhance bilateral relations, Hariri also announced the creation of the High Level Strategic Cooperation and Coordination Committee.
After talks with President Michel Sleiman, Hariri and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri Wednesday, Erdogan called on rival Lebanese factions to maintain national unity in order to ward off the threat of sectarian strife over the indictment that is widely expected to implicate Hizbullah in Rafik Hariri’s killing. The indictment is expected to be issued before the end of the year by the UN-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), which is probing the assassination.
Erdogan also held talks Thursday with the head of Hizbullah’s Loyalty to the Resistance parliamentary bloc, MP Mohammad Raad, as well as Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun, Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea and Phalange Party head Amin Gemayel.
Hariri’s remarks come amid a sharp split between the March 8 and 14 camps
over the STL’s indictment, raising fears of sectarian strife, especially if Hizbullah members are implicated in Hariri’s assassination. The split has led to a paralysis of the national unity Cabinet, which has not met for three weeks due to a dispute over the issue of “false witnesses” who allegedly misled the UN probe into Hariri’s killing.
Sleiman has deferred a Cabinet discussion of the issue of “false witnesses” – a major demand of the March 8 coalition – in order to avert a further split among the country’s ministers.
Similarly, a meeting of the National Dialogue Committee to discuss a defense strategy has also apparently been put off indefinitely pending a settlement of the issue of “false witnesses.”
But Hariri stressed in his speech that dialogue among rival factions is the only way to resolve political differences. “We will never give up on our call for reason, and our devotion to national dialogue, under the leadership of President Michel Sleiman, as the only way to resolve disputes and reconcile viewpoints under an Arab umbrella provided by efforts of the leadership in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Syria,” he said.
“I say this because I believe that Lebanese national unity has become a vital component of the strategic partnership which we look forward to achieve with Turkey,” the prime minister added.
Saudi Arabia and Syria, which wield great influence on rival Lebanese factions, are coordinating efforts in a bid to find a compromise solution to the crisis over the STL’s indictment.
Hariri said that Lebanon’s stability is an “integral part” of the region’s stability and has become, over the last three decades, “the general political indicator for regional stability and the focal point for the formation of the economic, developmental and humanitarian climates of communication between states.”
Hariri said that Lebanon’s stability is an “integral part” of the region’s stability and has become, over the last three decades, “the general political indicator for regional stability and the focal point for the formation of the economic, developmental and humanitarian climates of communication between states.”
Hariri praised Turkey’s “pivotal role” in regional and Islamic issues, especially in the Arab-Israeli conflict. “This was mostly appreciated by Arab peoples and governments who found in the Turkish people and leadership a great support for the Arab rights, especially the right of the Palestinian people to establish their own independent state, in the face of the Israeli policies and their danger to regional peace” he said.
“The second issue is related to Turkish role in protecting the civilized and human aspect of the religious diversity in the Orient, especially your role in activating the Islamic – Christian dialogue,” he added.
In another speech addressing a conference of the Union of Arab Banks, Hariri said that Turkey has become a regional power with global weight in various fields, supporting the just causes of the Arab and Islamic worlds. “Turkey has always been a loyal supporter of Lebanon during all difficult times,” he said. “Turkey also works to achieve political and security stability in Lebanon, and this was reflected through its participation to the UNIFIL forces” based in southern Lebanon.
Addressing the conference of the Union of Arab Banks held at the Phoenicia Hotel, Erdogan said that Turkey’s only goal in the region is peace, stability, prosperity and security, but warned against an Israeli attack on Lebanon or Gaza.
In a clear reference to Israel, which launched a devastating war on Lebanon in 2006 and a military offensive on the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip in 2009, Erdogan said: “Will enemies invade Lebanon with modern aircraft and tanks and kill children, women, destroy schools, hospitals, and then ask us to remain silent? Will they use the latest weapons, phosphorous and cluster bombs to invade Gaza and kill children who are playing in the farms and then ask us to be silent?”
Referring to the May 31 Israeli commando raid on a Turkish-flagged flotilla carrying aid and medicine to the Palestinians under Israeli siege in Gaza, Erdogan said: “Will they practice piracy in the Mediterranean Sea, international terrorism and kill nine Turks heading to Gaza, and then ask us to keep silent? We will not remain silent, and we will say that we are with justice.”
“I say that we want justice to prevail in this region and not piracy. We want peace to succeed in the Middle East. We do not want to kill children, and we want well-being and independence in this region,” he added.
In another speech at the opening of the hospital in Sidon, Erdogan expressed Turkey’s solidarity with Lebanon in this difficult time.
“I would like to emphasize the fact that we are one country. We are united and we must preserve this harmony and unity to stop those who want to spread discord,” he said. “Lebanon was and still is an example of coexistence of all colors, a place where all sects and religions have coexisted throughout history. But from time to time some people emerge to harm this harmony, so we must not grant them the opportunity.”
Erdogan said that so far Turkey has opened 55 schools in Lebanon and was working to build 15 more schools. During his two-day visit, Erdogan opened Turkish-financed projects in northern and southern Lebanon. He also inspected Turkish soldiers serving with UNIFIL troops in the southern village of Shaatiyeh.
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