French President Francois Hollande made a stopover in Lebanon Sunday, in his first venture into the Middle East since his election earlier this year, as he warned all those looking to “destabilise” Lebanon that “France will oppose them with all its might”.
Speaking at a press conference following his meeting with his Lebanese counterpart Michel Sleimane, Hollande drew on his country’s close alliance with Lebanon, a former French colony, recalling that four of his government’s ministers have made state visits to the country since its formation in May 2012, because they consider Lebanon as “a model of unity which has had to defend itself from so many problems in recent years”.
Hollande’s decision to make a short visit to the Lebanese capital en route to a meeting of Syrian opposition groups in Saudi Arabia is another sign of European leaders’ emphasis on the role the geographically important country must play in stopping the flow of the escalating civil war in Syria from engulfing neighbouring countries in the region.
Invoking the presence of 900 French troops in the country in the shape of UN forces, Hollande continued to commit French forces’ backing to Lebanon in protecting its “borders and in fighting against terrorism”. However, he added “it’s for the Lebanese to decide, but France will always look with interest, with attention, supporting all that can be done to facilitate this unity”.
Responding to questions from the media regarding the degree of risk of destabilisation and contagion in the country, in light of the assassination of Lebanese General Wissam al-Hassan, Sleimane cautioned his people against making “emotional reactions” in retribution, arguing that such measures “themselves cause worse results than the events which provoked them”. Instead he argued, good could be salvaged from the tragedy, by everyone involved “working hand in hand through dialogue and cooperation to prevent such events (from recurring) and to guarantee the unity of the nation”, similarly referring to the civil war in neighbouring Syria, which served as a cautionary tale to Lebanon of the terror of “bloody and violent circumstances”.
Adding that those responsible for the general’s killing must be held responsible, Hollande offered France’s help in uncovering all necessary information , insisting: “The Lebanese ask for it, the world asks for it, there must be no impunity”. Paying tribute to France’s strong relations with Lebanese democratic powers, he refuted suggestions France could “do more” to help, adding that “it’s for these political forces to find a way, not for France, but we can say to all Lebanese people (to trust) in the democratic parties they have chosen”.
However, he added, “regarding the threats of destabilisation, Lebanon must be protected and France will help in this”. The Lebanese president continued to call for France’s “neutral” support in helping to “distance Lebanon from all the events occurring in the Middle East and especially in Syria”, in order to help establish the much-touted national dialogue that the EU has repeatedly spoken out in support of. France’s support would be invaluable, in light of the influence it holds in the EU, which he added, “today has an important role to play in supporting Lebanese politics and Lebanese institutions”.
Dismissing concerns about the collapse of the current Lebanese administration, with elections scheduled for next Spring, Hollande insisted he was committed to working with the president to “pursue a politics that was committed to before (my election) and which can safeguard the security and integrity of Lebanon”. National unity was needed to ensure that “Lebanon must not be a victim of this crisis (in Syria), even if it is a close neighbour”. The role of the international community was not one of “intervention”, he emphasised, “but on the contrary a call to independence in Lebanon, to its unity, to dialogue”.
Hollande further reflected questioning from Lebanese media on the alleged involvement of French intelligence services in recruiting former Lebanese minister Michel Samaha to ambush the Syrian regime. A known close associate of authoritarian Syrian leader Bashar al Assad, Samaha was arrested in August on suspicion of inciting attacks in the North of Lebanon, in an apparent “terrorist plot”. The ex-Minister was accused alongside the head of the National Syrian Police Ali Mamlouk of being behind the alleged plots, which his supporters argue is a political tool designed to send a message to Assad that he is no longer capable of defending his close allies.
Refuting French involvement in the scandal, Hollande insisted that his election, “there has been no contact with the person you speak of”, adding “I don’t know if there was any before”. Giving his support to the Lebanese inquiry in motion, he added “that individual was arrested on very strong suspicions of his intentions”.
Always a close ally of Lebanon, France played an active role in the reconstruction of the country following the Second Lebanon War with Israel in 2006, itself a response to Hezbollah rocket attacks and raids on Israeli territory. Last month, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on the Lebanese government “to increase their efforts to reach a full monopoly on the possession of weapons and the use of force throughout Lebanon”, in light of an apparent spillover of internal tensions from Syria, he added the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) were as guilty as Syrian forces of compromising Lebanese sovereignty. Deploring the IDF’s “daily intrusions into Lebanese airspace”, he refuted claims by the Israeli administration these were for legitimate security reasons, and called on the Jewish State to “cease immediately” its “violations of Lebanese sovereignty and (UN Security Council) resolutions”.
He added such excursions into Lebanese airspace by Israel “greatly increase the risk of unintended consequences in a region that is already seething with tension”.
Hinting at Hezbollah culpability, Ban called on Lebanese authorities to “do more to impose law and order throughout the country” in light of “the ongoing security threats in the country and the proliferation of weapons held by non-state actors.
Hezbollah came in for further criticism by the Secretary-General on account of being the sole Lebanese militant group not to cooperate with the Security Council’s calls for disarming and disbanding. Confirming the presence of armed Palestinian groups operating both within and outside dedicated refugee camps in Lebanon, he added that “the armed component of Hezbollah is the most significant and most heavily armed Lebanese militia in the country, reaching almost the capacities of a regular army”.
“The maintenance of arms by Hezbollah and other groups poses a serious challenge to the State’s ability to exercise full sovereignty and authority over its territory,” he continued.
The EU has previously used the different wings of Hezbollah as justification for its refusal of Israel’s demands for its to place the group on its list of terror organisations with Cypriot Foreign Minister Erato Kozakou-Markoulis telling her Israeli counterpart Avigdor Lieberman at a meeting of the EU-Israel Association in July that the fact of its comprising “a political party, social service network, as well as an armed wing”, in conjunction with its links with both parliament and government means it “plays a specific role with regard to the status quo in Lebanon”. Refusing his request to outlaw the organisation, which would fall in line with existing US and Dutch policy, she added “there is no consensus among EU member states” for doing so.