Mustaqbal Meets in Tripoli: For Removing Arms ASAP, Govt. Responsible for Any Laxity

Al-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc on Tuesday called for “removing illegal arms” from Tripoli, which has witnessed three days of deadly clashes, holding the government responsible for “any negligence or procrastination in implementing the necessary measures to protect the city.”

“The residents of Bab al-Tabbaneh and Jabal Mohsen belong to one city and they reject fighting and infiltrators,” the bloc said in a statement recited by ex-PM Fouad Saniora, following an emergency meeting in Tripoli’s Quality Inn Hotel.

“The events in the city, together with the signals sent by some allies of the Syrian regime, raise question marks over the attempt to sow divisions in the area to depict it as an area that harbors terrorists,” the statement said.

Army troops deployed on Tuesday in sectors of Tripoli affected by clashes, in a bid to calm the northern city after three days of sectarian fighting that killed nine people and wounded dozens.

Troops entered Syria Street, the frontline of fighting between the majority Sunni Muslim district of Bab al-Tabbaneh, and Jabal Mohsen, whose residents are mostly Alawite, at around 6:00 am.

Battles first erupted on Saturday between residents of the rival neighborhoods when General Security agents arrested Shadi al-Mawlawi, a Salafist, on charges of belonging to a terrorist organization. Mawlawi's supporters say he was targeted because of his help for Syrian refugees fleeing to Lebanon.

Al-Mustaqbal bloc described Mawlawi's arrest as “suspicious and closer to a kidnap operation, as if it was plotted to inflame the situation.”

“We hold the government and its premier responsible for any negligence or procrastination in implementing the necessary measures to protect the city,” said the bloc.

“We declare our commitment to moderation, the state and the law and we stress that no cover will be provided for any side that takes up arms and disrupts security,” it added.

The conferees recalled that following previous clashes, “the bloc had voiced its support for removing illegal arms from Tripoli and it reiterates its call for removing them as soon as possible.”

The bloc also said it “looks forward to consolidating order and security in order to protect Lebanon and extend the state's authority across the country.”

It warned that “the enemies of the country are using Tripoli as an arena with the aim of eliminating it from the Lebanese political equation and turning it into a fragile entity.”

Addressing the issue of Islamist detainees in Lebanese prisons, the bloc called for “a speedy ruling in the case of Islamist detainees, as it is unacceptable to release the (Israeli) collaborators amid obscene celebrations while other detainees remain in prison without a fair trial.”