Nasrallah says opposition will not support Hariri as premier

Sun, 16 Jan 2011


Beirut - The Hezbollah-led Lebanese political opposition will not support the naming of caretaker premier Saad Hariri to form a new government, the Shiite movement's leader Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah said late Sunday.

"The opposition has unanimously agreed not to name Saad Hariri as prime minister of the new government," Nasrallah said during a televised speech on the Hezbollah-run al-Manar television.

"The opposition will exercise its own national convictions and will not be intimidated by the world's reaction on the government collapse," Nasrallah said.

On Wednesday, the opposition Hezbollah bloc withdrew from the unity government amid tensions over the investigation into the 2005 assassination of former premier Rafik Hariri. Tensions have been high in Lebanon amid reports that the United Nations-backed tribunal plans to indict members of Hezbollah, a militant Shiite group.

Nasrallah stressed that the opposition "will not remain silent on any cabinet that neglects the demands of the people."

Lebanese President Michel Suleiman will start consultations Monday with the various parliamentary blocs to name a new premier, who will be able to form a government and end the political impasse in the country.

"The main reason for the government resignation is its inability to face the repercussions of indictments while insisting on financing a tribunal which is conspiring against the Resistance (Hezbollah)," Nasrallah said.

Nasrallah confirmed that Lebanese officials were informed that indictments in the Hariri case will be submitted Monday to the pre- trial judge Daniel Fransen.

The Lebanese MTV television station on Sunday quoted Special Tribunal for Lebanon Chief of Public Affairs Crispin Thorold as saying that General Prosecutor Danielle Bellemare would hand over the indictment to Fransen before Wednesday.

" I would like to be very clear and honest. In the coming days, there will be two tracks: The first is the parliamentary consultations to name a new PM, and the second is that of the upcoming indictment," Nasrallah said.

The expected indictment had divided the government, after reports indicated that Hezbollah members would be named in connection with Hariri's assassination.

Hezbollah has rejected any possible charges and described the work of the tribunal as a "US-Israeli project."

The tribunal was created by a 2007 UN Security Council resolution to try the people who plotted the attack which killed Hariri.

The former premier was assassinated in a car bomb attack on the Beirut seafront on February 14, 2005, which also killed 22 other people.

The political turmoil has prompted the leaders of Turkey, Qatar and Syria to attend a mini-summit in Damascus Monday to try to find a solution to the political crisis, in the wake of the collapse of the unity government.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/362604,not-support-hariri-premier.html.

Hariri: Lebanon's interests take priority over politics - Summary

Beirut - Caretaker Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri said Friday that his country needs the efforts of all its people, but primarily the wisdom of its leaders, to overcome the current political turmoil.

"Some political figures in particular should overcome the disputes of the past because no one is more important than their country," Hariri said after holding talks with President Michel Suleiman.

Hariri returned earlier to Beirut after holding talks with his Turkish counterpart as part of an ongoing effort, including stops in the United States and France, to build support following the dissolution earlier this week of the unity government he had led.

That collapse was triggered Wednesday by the resignation of Hezbollah members who are opposed to a UN tribunal investigating the 2005 assassination of former prime minister Rafik Hariri, father of the current caretaker prime minister.

"My allies and I will participate in the parliamentary consultations. We will cooperate fully with the president to form a new cabinet that would meet the demands of national consensus," the caretaker premier said.

Hariri stressed if he had to choose between authority and Lebanon's dignity, he would choose the later.

"Let it be clear for everyone that I have never sought authority at any expense," Hariri added.

"The 11 ministers' resignation is a democratic right. However, we want to note that this decision is a development unprecedented in the history of governments in Lebanon. We fear it will become a model of the Lebanese failure to establish national unity governments."

Hariri said that Saudi-Syrian efforts to resolve the political impasse in Lebanon "played a central role in maintaining a political truce in Lebanon in the past months."

He added that the efforts aimed to prevent strife and called for steps to strengthen state institutions.

Hezbollah and its allies have for months been pressing Hariri to disregard the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, which is probing the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri on the grounds that it is part of a US-Israeli plot that will indict Hezbollah members.

A source close to the Hezbollah-led opposition said earlier Hariri can head the new government if he pledges to stop the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.

"We do not want to close the doors completely," the official said.

Hariri "could head the new government until 2013 if he pledges to terminate the plot behind the international tribunal," he added.

Hariri's adviser, former lawmaker Ghattas Khoruy, said "Prime Minister Saad Hariri is considered the only candidate for the premiership."

Suleiman has asked Hariri to head a caretaker government pending the outcome of consultations due to start Monday between Suleiman and parliamentarians on creation of a new government.

The current crisis is Lebanon's worst since 2008, when Hezbollah launched a military offensive to protest a government decision by the majority to dismantle the group's private telecommunication network.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/362391,priority-politics-summary.html.

Iran offers Hariri to help Lebanese military

28/11/2010

TEHRAN (AFP) -- Iranian Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi on Sunday told Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri that Tehran was prepared to help the Lebanese army, state television's website reported.

"We have stated on several occasions, and we say it again today, that we stand alongside the Lebanese army and are prepared to cooperate" with it, Vahidi said during a meeting with the visiting premier, the report said.

In a symbolic move, Vahidi offered Hariri an Iranian-made sub-machine gun Tondar (Thunder), used in urban warfare. Iranian television showed pictures of the gilded weapon which was placed in a wooden box.

Hariri for his part expressed optimism that his visit would enhance cooperation between Iran and Lebanon in the field of defense, according to the report.

Hariri, who arrived in Tehran on Saturday for a three-day official visit, made the statement after visiting an exhibition dedicated to the achievements of Iran's defense industry.

"The stability, security and unity of Lebanon play a very important role in resolving regional and internal issues. Therefore, I wanted to come to Iran and see your defense achievements, even though it is contrary to the position of our enemies," Hariri was quoted as saying.

Earlier this month the United States, which accuses Iran of interference in Lebanon, lifted a freeze on $100 million in US military aid to Lebanon.

The Iranian minister also criticized a UN tribunal probing the 2005 assassination of Hariri's father, former premier Rafiq Hariri, while condemning his killers as "enemies of Lebanon."

"Today, some from outside Lebanon seek to take the security of Lebanon hostage, in the form of the tribunal," Vahidi said.

The tribunal is expected to implicate high-ranking Hezbollah officials in the murder, but the party has warned against this, prompting fears of sectarian conflict between Hariri's Sunni supporters and the Shiite Hezbollah.

Iran is a staunch backer of Hezbollah.

Ahead of the visit, a Lebanese ministerial source told AFP that Hariri hoped Iran would help to reconcile the rival pro-Western camp and Hezbollah.

Hariri is meeting Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Sunday evening and the two countries are also expected to focus on mutual cooperation, following up on 17 agreements signed during Ahmadinejad's October visit to Lebanon.

Source: Ma'an News Agency.
Link: http://maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=336752.

Hariri: Israel not after peace with Arabs

Lebanon calls on world nations to form a united front to pressure the Israeli regime into heeding the international community's will regarding the issue of Palestine.

Speaking at an economic forum in Spain, visiting Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri criticized Israel for not having "authentic interest" in reaching a "wide-ranging and fair" peace arrangement with the Arab world.

The Lebanese leader urged the international community to pressure Israel with measures such as "cutting off some aid" to the Tel Aviv regime.

Hariri made the call one day after he accused Israel of igniting wars to hold up the long-stalled peace process and warned about the catastrophic consequences of a failure in the Palestinian negotiations, "bigger than the region can handle."

"Israel has to be told that 'you can start all the wars you want in the Middle East but in the end there can only be a political solution,'" Hariri said on the first day of his visit to Madrid on Thursday, stressing a political solution was the only way to make progress in the region.

The remarks came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly told close aides on Wednesday that the Tel Aviv regime would not accept a peace agreement forced on it by external forces. The hawkish premier also ruled out any agreement that did not allow Israel to retain its military presence along the border with Jordan.

Israel is generally viewed as an archenemy in Lebanon, the south of which was under Israeli occupation for more than two decades until Israeli troops withdrew from the area in 2000.

Beirut has been complaining to the international community against the constant violation of the Lebanese airspace by Israeli fighter jets and the regime's nonstop threats of a new war against the nation.

Tel Aviv launched a military offensive on Lebanon in 2006, but was faced with strong resistance from Hezbollah. The 33-day war aimed at crushing the Resistance movement failed to achieve its objective and Israel was forced to pull out from the country under UN Security Council Resolution 1701.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=122871§ionid=351020203.

Hariri wants stronger ties with Syria

The conflict between Israel and the Palestinians is “much more explosive” than the Iranian nuclear crisis, Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri said in an interview published yesterday.

The Middle East conflict “is much more explosive, brimming over with ‘uranium and extremism’, than any other regional issue,” he told the Spanish newspaper El Mundo, without elaborating.

Hariri, who is expected for a two-day visit in Madrid today, said Lebanon was in favor of a “Middle East without nuclear weapons” which he said “includes Israel” and not only Iran. As Hariri prepares to make his second visit to Syria since taking office in November, he also said closer ties with Damascus were key to counter an “Israeli threat”.

“Stronger ties with Syria mean there is a firmer position toward Israel,” Hariri said.

He also accused the media of under-reporting Israeli “atrocities” toward the Palestinians. While pedophile priests in the Roman Catholic Church were given “extensive media coverage” amid “attacks against the Vatican”, “atrocities committed by Israel against Palestinians” go practically unreported, said Hariri, who is a Muslim. For Israel “war is always an option”, he added.

Source: Gulf Times.
Link: http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=353846&version=1&template_id=37&parent_id=17.

Hariri to visit Syria to revise bilateral accords

Lebanese PM wants Beirut to have 'privileged, sincere and honest relations' with Damascus.

BEIRUT - Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri will travel to Damascus next month to discuss revising bilateral accords, his press office said.

"The prime minister announced to the cabinet his intention to visit Damascus at the beginning of next month," it said in a statement late Wednesday.

"He noted the need to examine bilateral accords currently in place and to propose new agreements if need be."

Hariri, who took office last November, made a landmark fence-mending visit to Damascus in December, five years after the assassination of his father, ex-prime minister Rafiq Hariri, which had been originally blamed on Syria, without evidence, and Damascus has denied any involvement.

The 39-year-old premier said at the end of the two-day visit, during which he held three rounds of private talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, that he wanted to see "privileged, sincere and honest relations" between the two countries.

Source: Middle East Online.
Link: http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=37787.

Hariri vows to follow in his father's footsteps

‘We must consecrate national unity’
By Nafez Kawas
Daily Star correspondent
Saturday, February 13, 2010

BEIRUT: Prime Minister Saad Hariri vowed on Friday to follow in the footsteps of his father, assassinated former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

“Rafik Hariri opted for the path of coexistence between the Lebanese and was keen on preserving the unity, stability and development [of the country],” he told visitors on Friday.

“We must consecrate national unity,” the premier added. “We have fought for the last four years to build a nation for all the Lebanese.”

Urging supporters to participate in the downtown Beirut rally on February 14 to mark five years since the assassination of his father, he said Sunday’s rally “will show that we are keen on continuing Rafik Hariri’s path.”

In an interview Friday evening broadcasted live of MTV and Future TV, Hariri stressed that “only death” would separate him from his allies in the March 14 Forces.

Hariri said Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblatt remained a “main ally” to the Future Movement, adding it was his “democratic right” to hold a different political opinion.

Jumblatt said on Wednesday he would attend the commemoration of Hariri but would not make a speech. Following last year’s parliamentary polls, Jumblatt broke with the March 14 alliance saying the circumstances which tied him to the group were no longer applicable.

Also on Wednesday, Jumblatt said during an interview with As-Safir newspaper that he had never asked the US to invade Syria like it did in Iraq.

Hariri said on Friday that he had turned the page with Syria, adding that the two neighboring countries ought to build “mutual trust.” The premier said talks were ongoing with Syrian President Bashar Assad.

Hariri said he and Assad had “frankly tackled” pending issues and discussed “how we can build for the future.”

“Assad was clear that he wants to build state-to-state relations with Lebanon,” he said.

Hariri praised the initiative by Saudi King Abdullah to mend Arab divisions, adding that if tensions had persisted between Saudi Arabia and Syria, the situation in Lebanon would have been critical.

Rafik Hariri’s death in a massive bomb blast on Beirut seafront in February 2005 was widely blamed on Syria although Damascus has denied any involvement. An international tribunal based in The Hague was set up by a UN Security Council Resolution in 2007 to try suspects in the murder.

Saad Hariri said he would respect any findings made by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) concerning his father’s assassination.

United Nations chief Ban Ki-Moon’s spokesman said Friday that the UN remains committed to legal efforts to uncover the truth about the slaying of Hariri five years ago.

“The secretary general reaffirms the commitment of the UN to the efforts of the STL to uncover the truth, so as to bring those responsible to justice and end impunity in Lebanon,” Martin Nesirky said in a statement.

Tackling recent threats made by Israel against Lebanon, Hariri said he was leading contacts to raise the awareness of the international community about the dangers of such threats.

Hariri also renewed Lebanon’s commitment to the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which put and end to the summer 2006 war with Israel. Concerning Hizbullah’s arsenal, Hariri said the issue was “problematic” and ought to be tackled during National Dialogue sessions

On Friday, the March 14 Forces laid the final touches on preparations for the February 14 rally to mark the fifth anniversary of former Premier Rafik Hariri’s assassination,

The Central News Agency reported that a delegation from the Development and Liberation bloc – representing Speaker Nabih Berri – would visit former Premier Rafik Hariri’s memorial in downtown Beirut on the eve of February 14.

The agency added that other figures within the March 8 coalition would also visit the memorial. However, they would not participate in the commemoration.

On Friday, Russian Ambassador Sergei Boukine laid a wreath on Hariri’s memorial. Boukine praised the late premiere’s struggle for the impendence of Lebanon.

Source: The Daily Star.
Link: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=2&article_id=111734.

Hariri: Israel seeks war with Lebanon, Syria, Iran

Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri has warned of Israeli attempts to start a military confrontation with Lebanon, Syria and Iran.

Hariri, who was in Italy to meet with Pope Benedict XVI, urged Rome to pressure Israel to take part in peace negotiations.

"Israel can't claim to be interested in the peace process without doing anything tangible in this regard," Hariri said, noting that the Israelis were currently gripped with division.

The Lebanese prime minister, who was taking part in an interview with Italian channel RAI News 24 on Friday, added that while "Arabs want peace," Israel only seeks war with "Lebanon, Syria and Iran."

Hariri also highlighted daily Israeli violations of Lebanese air space and described them as unacceptable.

This is not the first time during the past weeks that Hariri has warned of the "escalating" threats that Israel poses to the Middle East, as officials in Tel Aviv have been repeating threats of a full-fledged war against Lebanon.

Late last month, an Israeli minister revealed the regime's intentions to wage a third attack on Lebanon. Some news outlets have even reported that Tel Aviv had already mobilized its troops for the military aggression.

On February 5, Hariri objected to the increasing number of Lebanese airspace violations carried out by Israeli warplanes. He also called on the international community to prevent a possible Israeli attack on his country.

Just days later, he renewed his call and warned Tel Aviv that it would be confronted by a united Lebanon if war breaks out.

"I think they're betting that there might be some division in Lebanon, if there is a war against us…Well, there won't be a division in Lebanon… We will stand against Israel. We will stand with our own people," he vowed.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=119125§ionid=351020203.

Hariri vows united Lebanon against Israeli threats

Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri voices concern about escalating Israeli threats but insists that Tel Aviv will be confronted by a united Lebanon if a war breaks out.

"We hear a lot of Israeli threats day in and day out, and not only threats," Hariri told the BBC on Wednesday.

"We see what's happening on the ground and in our airspace and what's happening all the time during the past two months — every day we have Israeli planes entering Lebanese airspace," Hariri added.

The Lebanese leader noted that such moves by Israel were on the rise and warned, "This is something that is really dangerous."

The remarks come after repeated threats from Israeli officials in recent weeks of a full-fledged war against Lebanon's Hezbollah resistance movement, and amid Tel Aviv's war of words with the Damascus Government.

Hariri said Israel counts on Lebanon's confessionally-divided politics and the assumption that the Lebanese could not unite in case of a foreign attack.

"I think they're betting that there might be some division in Lebanon, if there is a war against us…Well, there won't be a division in Lebanon."

"We will stand against Israel. We will stand with our own people," he vowed.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=118319§ionid=351020203.

Israel has no say on Hezbollah -- Hariri

BEIRUT, Lebanon, Feb. 4 (UPI) -- Hezbollah's right to maintain its weapons is a matter for Lebanon to decide, not Israel, the Lebanese prime minister said.

Beirut in 2009 adopted a measure that allowed Hezbollah, now a member of the Lebanese government, to maintain its arsenal in defiance of U.N. resolutions.

U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701 helped solidify a cease-fire agreement to a 34-day war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006. The resolution calls on Hezbollah to disarm while reminding Israel of its obligation to respect Lebanese sovereignty.

Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri called for formal recognition that Israel was in constant violation of the cease-fire agreement because of daily military flights over Lebanese territory, Lebanon's Daily Star newspaper reports.

"We ask the international community to be aware of daily Israeli threats and we assure Israel that betting on schism in Lebanon will fail," the prime minister said.

Beirut said Hezbollah has the right to maintain an armed resistance so long as the threat from Israel persists. Israel and opponents of the measure said there would be no need for a defensive posture should Hezbollah disarm.

"It is not Israel who decides what Lebanon wants," said Hariri.

Source: United Press International (UPI).
Link: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/Special/2010/02/04/Israel-has-no-say-on-Hezbollah-Hariri/UPI-34231265322207/.

Hariri warns of another Israeli attack on Lebanon

Lebanon's Prime Minister Saad Hariri has expressed concerns over a possible Israeli attack on the country, citing an escalated violation of Lebanese airspace by Israeli aircraft.

Hariri, who arrived in France on Thursday on his first official visit to a Western country since forming his government in 2009, made the remarks in an interview with the French newspaper Le Monde.

He said that Israeli aircraft violated the Lebanese airspace 25 times in one single day last week.

"I also mentioned the necessity to end the daily Israeli violations of this resolution (United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701), the escalation of the Israeli threats against Lebanon and its government," Hariri said.

The Lebanese premier said it seems that Israel thinks hitting the southern part of Lebanon does not mean that it has attacked the whole country.

Hariri said when Israel attacked southern Lebanon in 2006 "it damaged the country's infrastructure. I wondered if that should not be considered an attack on the whole country."

Israel launched an attack on Lebanon in 2006, but was met with stern resistance from Hezbollah. The 33-day war resulted in a heavy defeat for Tel Aviv, after the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701 called on Israel to withdraw all of its forces from Lebanon.

"Naturally, this topic is part of a wider problem, the one of Israel's refusal to go forward in the [Middle East] peace process, especially with the Palestinians," Hariri was quoted by Reuters as saying.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=116746§ionid=351020203.

Israel obstructs peace: Lebanese PM

AMMAN, Jan. 6 (Xinhua) -- Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri said on Wednesday that Israel does not want peace and it obstructs the realization of peace with the Palestinians.

"It is clear that the Arabs want peace and Israel does not want it. The Arabs offered the Arab Peace Initiative but Israel is the part that hinders realizing peace," the Lebanese premier made his remarks in a press conference in Amman following a meeting with Jordanian King Abdullah II.

Adopted by the Arab leaders in Beirut in 2002, the initiative offers a full peace and normal relations between Israel and all the Arab states in return for Israel's withdrawal from territories occupied after 1967. It also entails an agreed solution to the refugee problem and the establishment of a Palestinian state.

"The way Israel deals with the Palestinian Authority, the creation of settlements and Israel's violation of the Palestinians' rights do not show that it wants peace," he said at the press conference.

He also called on the Palestinian factions to end division between them, saying the main beneficiary of the Palestinians' division is Israel.

Earlier in the day, King Abdullah II of Jordan met with Hariri and discussed regional developments and means to bolster bilateral ties, Petra News Agency reported.

At the meeting, Abdullah underlined Jordan's support to Lebanon as well as its sovereignty, stability and security.

The king also reviewed efforts exerted to attain Mideast peace that ensures the creation of an independent Palestinian state and ending the Israeli occupation of all Lebanese territories.

Source: Xinhua.
Link: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2010-01/07/content_12767406.htm.

Lebanon PM on 1st Syria visit since father's death

By ALBERT AJI (AP)

DAMASCUS, Syria — Lebanon's prime minister, who has blamed neighboring Syria for the assassination of his father, visited Damascus Saturday for the first time since the 2005 killing — a trip that a close associate said was extremely difficult for him to make.

Despite the unresolved issue of his father's slaying in a massive truck bombing in Beirut, Lebanese Premier Saad Hariri's visit potentially opens the way for a new era in the two countries' relations, which have been characterized by upheaval and suspicion for decades.

The 39-year-old Hariri has appealed for relations with Syria based on "clarity and honesty." He was greeted warmly by Syrian President Bashar Assad upon his arrival at the presidential palace at the start of his two-day visit, and Lebanese media said he would attend a dinner banquet hosted by Assad.

Assad adviser Buthaina Shaaban told reporters their talks were "frank" and "succeeded in overcoming difficulties that marred relations in the past five years."

"The guarantee to that is the will of both President Assad and Hariri to build a positive and constructive relationship," she said.

Hariri said in a statement his government was looking forward to establishing "real and strategic relations with Syria."

Syria directly dominated Lebanon for nearly 30 years and kept tens of thousands of troops on its soil. After the killing of Hariri's father, Rafik, Syria came under intense pressure from its opponents in Lebanon, who staged massive protests, and from the West, forcing it to withdraw its troops from Lebanon.

Syria repeatedly denied involvement in the assassination and a series of other political slayings and bombings that followed, but Hariri and his supporters continued to implicate Syria in the killing. Anti-Syrian parties were swept to power in 2005 elections in Lebanon.

The visit by Hariri was "very difficult on the personal level" and involves "great sacrifice," said Hariri loyalist and former lawmaker Mustafa Alloush.

"But as prime minister of Lebanon, it is quite normal to have such a visit. ... It is necessary and there is a need to settle all aspects of the relationship," Alloush told The Associated Press.

He said the visit did not mean some in Lebanon had dropped their belief that Syria was responsible for the killing of Rafik Hariri, who also served as prime minister.

"But this matter is up to the international tribunal now; it is no longer a personal issue," Alloush said.

A U.N.-backed tribunal has been set up to prosecute the assassins, but no suspects have been charged.

Syria has sought recently to improve its relations with the West, largely through its actions in Lebanon. Assad backed a peace deal between rival political factions in Lebanon that ended sectarian violence in May 2008.

Last year, Syria established formal diplomatic relations with Lebanon and set up an embassy in Lebanon for the first time since the countries' independence from France in the 1940s.

Syria still maintains influence in Lebanon through its backing of the militant group Hezbollah.

Hariri and his pro-Western political allies are in an uneasy power-sharing government with a Hezbollah-led grouping.