Emir reaffirms confidence in the Army on its 81st anniversary: No legitimacy for any weapon outside the state's legitimacy
Beirut - Mansour Shaaban
All political positions converge on the importance of the army’s role in preserving Lebanon’s stability, agreeing to highlight its sacrifices and praise its leadership. Perhaps the most eloquent statement came on the occasion of its 81st founding anniversary on August 1, in a greeting from the son of the military institution, President of the Republic, General Joseph Aoun: “The Lebanese Army is not an institution like others; rather, it is the sole guarantor of Lebanon’s unity, sovereignty, and independence.
The time has come for all of us to firmly establish this constant constitutional and national truth: there is no legitimacy for any weapon outside the state’s legitimacy, and no protection for this homeland except through its unifying national army, which represents all Lebanese across their different regions, sects, and affiliations.
Only the army possesses the authority, strength, and legitimacy to serve as the state’s exclusive military arm, and this is what we are steadily and resolutely pursuing, step by step, to safeguard coexistence and the country’s stability.”
He added: “In the South, where our army has written its most magnificent pages of sacrifice and resilience, the army’s responsibility today multiplies with each step of Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory. The coming phase requires the full deployment of military units along the entire southern border and the exclusive extension of state authority over its lands, thereby affirming to the world that Lebanon, through its army alone, can protect its sovereignty and secure this sensitive area, paving the way for the safe return of its people to their villages and towns. If the army is fulfilling this grave role, then the Lebanese rallying around it is not a luxury but an existential necessity.” He considered that any doubt cast on the army institution or attempts to isolate it from its popular base weaken the state as a whole.
He called on all Lebanese, both at home and in the diaspora, to “make the army their unifying red line, above all political or partisan differences.”
For his part, Army Commander General Rodolphe Heikel, addressing military personnel while inspecting units deployed in the South, affirmed: “The army continues to carry out its missions to consolidate security and provide suitable conditions for the return of residents, in coordination with other state institutions.” He stated: “What we are doing is not merely a mission; it is a matter of the state’s existence, the homeland’s security and stability, and reassuring citizens.”
On the ground, the Lebanese Customs Administration announced in a statement that a specialized anti-smuggling detachment, subordinate to the Tripoli Customs Office, “managed to seize a large quantity of drones in the city of Tripoli, confiscating the items and escorting their owner” to the city’s customs center. Meanwhile, villages in the Yellow Zone and those adjacent to it to the south, such as Mansouri, Majdal Zoun, Bayt al-Siyad, Hadatha, Hariss, Al-Tayri, and others, are experiencing a state of tension following Israeli military explosions whose echoes reverberated throughout the South, while unmanned aerial vehicles monitor Beirut and the Southern Suburb daily.
