March 14 Demands Govt. Resignation, Urges Referring Geagea, Harb Cases to STL
The March 14 forces on Thursday called on the government to “resign immediately” and called for referring the assassination attempts against Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea and MP Boutros Harb to the U.N.-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon.
In a statement issued after an emergency meeting at Harb’s residence in the wake of a failed attempt on his life, the March 14 forces also called on the government to immediately hand over telecom data linked to recent assassinations bids to the relevant security agencies.
“We hold the government in general and the Free Patriotic Movement and Hizbullah in particular responsible for failing to hand over this data,” the March 14 forces added in their statement.
Telecom Minister Nicolas Sehnaoui is an FPM member.
“These acts can be linked to the government’s collusion in failing to hand over the accused in the Hariri murder and in providing cover for illegal arms,” said March 14’s statement.
Earlier on Thursday, security forces found an explosive device in the elevator of a building in Beirut where MP Harb has an office after witnesses wrangled with a suspect who was whisked away by a suspicious vehicle.
Police found the device in the elevator shaft of the building that lies in Badaro district’s Sami Solh street a few hours after the suspect carrying a knife was subdued but managed to escape along with two accomplices.
“The attempt comes following several reports about plots to assassinate March 14 leaders which were confirmed by the interior minister more than once,” the March 14 forces noted in their statement.
“We realized from the very beginning that some sides are trying to drag us into changing the rules of political engagement,” they added.
The March 14 forces also demanded “immediate military protection around the house of MP Harb and around the houses of all March 14 leaders.”
Source: Naharnet
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