Hamadeh: Syrian attempts to destabilize Lebanon will intensify
Hariri: The President is performing a media function in favor of a regional party
The repercussions of the shocking and resonant statements made by the former Deputy President of the Syrian Republic, Abdel Halim Khaddam, in his interview with “Al-Arabiya” satellite channel, continue to reverberate on various levels, dominating other topics.
Despite the country entering the New Year holiday, where the manifestations of joy were absent due to the continued series of killings and assassinations, the facts revealed by Khaddam, confirming direct threats to the late President Rafik Hariri by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, remained present and cast their shadows over the overall political situation.
Communications Minister Marwan Hamadeh believes that “Syria will continue its attempts to destabilize Lebanon more aggressively after the bombshell statements made by Khaddam,” noting that “the Syrian response had already begun since the issuance of Resolution 1636.”
On the other hand, Syrian political authorities continued their campaign of denigration against Khaddam, as the Baath Party decided to expel him from its ranks “considering him a traitor to the party and the nation, deviating from its principles, values, and traditions.” Meanwhile, the media office in Baabda Palace joined this campaign, accusing Khaddam of “intentionally distorting facts,” considering that “his television statement was confused in terms of timing and location.” It denied that President Emile Lahoud had launched incitement campaigns against the late president.
This prompted a response from the media office of Saad Hariri, the head of the “Future” parliamentary bloc, who expressed deep regret at involving the President of the Republic in Lebanon in matters that harm its reputation and credibility, similar to what harms the Lebanese. The statement considered that the President is performing a media function in favor of a regional party. The statement described Khaddam’s statements as a “historical testimony that is in the interest of Lebanon and the truth defended by all Lebanese.”
This comes at a time when a diplomatic source confirmed that the French Foreign Ministry did not make any contact with Khaddam, who is on a private visit to France. The source told “AFP”: “The French diplomacy learned from press reports that Khaddam has been residing in Paris since June.”
Communications Minister Marwan Hamadeh expects that Syrian attempts to destabilize Lebanon will increase, perhaps with more intensity, with this bombshell, as the witness from the household precisely described what we said to the international investigators about the assassination of the late President Rafik Hariri.
He pointed out in an interview with “Alhurra” (the American station) that the Syrian response (to these statements) had already started, and since the issuance of Resolution 1636 through several initiatives, the first of which was attempts to explode in the south. And it will not be the last attempt to dismantle the Lebanese government by the isolation of some ministers close to Syria.
