| Submit your comments on this article |
| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| MP Franjieh: Hezbollah is trying to abort Doha Accord |
| 2008-07-28 |
| During an interview by Dalia Nehme of Naharnet MP Samir Franjieh blamed the Tripoli clashes on Hezbollah that is trying to "abolish" the political concept of the Doha Accord and preempt any discussion of its weapons. Franjieh said Hezbollah is launching a "preemptive move" aimed at creating a "fait accompli." The Tripoli clashes, he said, are "pressures that victimize innocent people." He called for "disarming the whole of Tripoli," and said Lebanon should ask Syrian President Bashar Assad to order Palestinian factions affiliated with Damascus to "pull their weapons out" of Tripoli and other areas. "Hezbollah is trying to abolish the political results of the Doha Accord and to block dialogue that is to be launched by President Michel Suleiman," Franjieh said. "There is no agreement between the Lebanese (factions) on mentioning either the resistance or the weapons in the new cabinet's policy statement," he noted. He recalled that a ranking Iranian official has offered a barter deal , pledging stability in Lebanon in return for approval by the west of the Iranian nuclear program. "This should be humiliating for Hezbollah," Franjieh said. "The Lebanese people have no say in Iran's nuclear program. In fact we are for banning nuclear weapons throughout the Middle East," he added. "We want Lebanon pacified" in Middle East conflicts, he stressed. Franjieh denied reports that he would be a candidate in the 2009 parliamentary elections for the Maronite seat in the Tripoli constituency. "I would not be a candidate in Tripoli constituency. This is out of the question," he stressed. However, he insisted that "we would run for elections and we would win the elections. I have no doubt about this. For us the elections (in 2009) are less difficult than what they were in 2005." Nevertheless, premier Fouad Siniora's cabinet is faced by the "major question: Would elections be feasible if we have an armed faction?" Franjieh said. "Weapons eliminate the principle of majority. In the year 2005 the March 14 won majority of parliamentary seats in the elections. The result was practically eliminated by the use of force," Franjieh explained. "Having armed factions (running for elections) would limit freedom of voters," he stressed. Franjieh spoke of "differences in opinion" between March 14 factions and said one of the main problems that the alliance faces is the lack of "interaction between its leaders and masses." "The March 14 priorities should be set in a way to reflect the opinion of its masses, not of its factions, be they political parties or sects," Franjieh explained. "We have the will to overcome this problem," he stressed. |
| Posted by:Fred |