Salam: We continue working for the release of all our prisoners... and calls to resolve the displacement crisis in the South before winter
Beirut - Mansour Shaaban
While the situation in southern Lebanon remains unchanged, the “Coalition of Residents of Southern Border Towns” called in a statement for Lebanon to formally file a complaint with the United Nations, the UN Security Council, and international legal and humanitarian bodies to find an immediate solution to the plight of displaced persons and their problems, as winter approaches and the new school year begins.
This comes as President of the Republic General Joseph Aoun stated that “Israel continues to violate the framework agreement reached, through ongoing shelling and the destruction of the southern villages it occupies, demolishing homes and destroying property.” President Aoun emphasized, during his meeting with the Dutch Minister of Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, Sigurd Sijgerdisma, that “the Lebanese Army is fully carrying out its duties in the areas where it has redeployed, and everything said otherwise aims to disparage the army, question its role, and cast doubt on its commitment to the decisions of the political authority.” He pointed out that “reconstructing the south is the responsibility of the Lebanese state, but this cannot be achieved under continued Israeli occupation.”
He stressed “Lebanon’s commitment to the continued presence of international forces (UNIFIL) in the south due to their important role,” clarifying that “if the extension of these forces proves impossible, Lebanon welcomes any brotherly or friendly country willing to complete the work done by UNIFIL forces, particularly in providing support to the army and the people of the south in humanitarian, social, health, and educational fields,” noting that “communications are ongoing to find a legal formula for such an international presence.”
For his part, the Dutch Minister of Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation conveyed to President Aoun his country’s solidarity with Lebanon and its people “amid the difficult circumstances they are enduring,” noting that his visit to Nabatieh allowed him to closely observe the scale of suffering endured by Lebanese people and the repercussions of the war on their lives and regions.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Dr. Nawaf Salam said after meeting the Dutch minister that “the return of any liberated Lebanese to his homeland safely constitutes an important step on the path to addressing this file,” and he extended his thanks to the United States for the efforts it has made in this regard. He added: “We will continue working until the release of all our prisoners, the discovery of the fate of the missing, and the complete Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territories.”
The Lebanese Army, through the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), yesterday received a Lebanese citizen released by Israel. A Lebanese military source told Agence France-Presse that “the Red Cross transferred the released individual through the Nahr al-Kalb border crossing in southern Lebanon and handed him over to the army in the Sidon area.”
For his part, Grand Mufti of Lebanon Sheikh Abdul Latif Darian concluded his visit to Egypt after participating in the International Islamic Conference organized by the General Secretariat of Houses and Bodies of Fatwa in the World in Cairo under the title: “Family Challenges Amid Major Transformations.” The Mufti met with Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayeb, who wished Lebanon and its people “security, safety, and stability.”
For his part, Mufti Darian affirmed that “Lebanon has no salvation except through cooperation and solidarity with its neighborhood and its Arab depth.”
