Aoun: Do Not Mix Sojod Incident with Defense Strategy!
Source: Nowlebanon.com, 3-9-2008
Change and Reform bloc leader General Michel Aoun held a press conference on Thursday, in which he hoped the investigation into the helicopter shooting, which killed an officer in the Lebanese army, would be completed in the near future. Auon compared the incident to events in Iraq involving US friendly fire and the shooting of reporters. "Things happen by accident," he said.
Aoun, who also heads the opposition-aligned Free Patriotic Movement, warned against blurring the boundary between the helicopter shooting and national defense strategy.
Aoun had harsh words for the Lebanese newspaper L'Orient Le Jour, which he said published information and allegations on the suspect who allegedly opened fire on the helicopter, before the man was handed over to judicial authorities. The newspaper "deserves to be handed over to judicial authorities for the headline it ran on the "criminal" ... before the court issued its verdict," he said.
The FPM leader also came to the defense of Lebanon's judicial system, saying no convict in Lebanon was imprisoned for their beliefs. "We are tried for our acts, whether Fatah al-Islam prisoners or others. No one is imprisoned for their beliefs," he said.
"The press reports that we are falling apart ... Unfortunately, this sort of thought only adds to our national loss. But I thank the press for the publicity, for the people have discovered that, no matter what we do, we will be targeted," Aoun said.
On the recent turbulence in northern Lebanon, Aoun said, "We know that the security incidents did not come about randomly. There are people, with political backing, who are assigned to create problems ... We request that the security forces do what is necessary to uncover these networks and their affiliations. We cannot live under rumors from now on."
Asked if planned to travel to the north, Aoun said it was his duty, and that he would do so "when the security situation is appropriate."
He also applauded General Jean Kahwaji on his appointment as army commander, and also commented on last week's shooting of a military helicopter.
"We congratulate the army on appointing a new leader ... and wish him luck in his new mission. The army's success is the nation's success. The military remains the mother institution that the Lebanese people can rely on in difficult times," Aoun told reporters at his residence in Rabiyeh.
Change and Reform bloc leader General Michel Aoun held a press conference on Thursday, in which he hoped the investigation into the helicopter shooting, which killed an officer in the Lebanese army, would be completed in the near future. Auon compared the incident to events in Iraq involving US friendly fire and the shooting of reporters. "Things happen by accident," he said.
Aoun, who also heads the opposition-aligned Free Patriotic Movement, warned against blurring the boundary between the helicopter shooting and national defense strategy.
Aoun had harsh words for the Lebanese newspaper L'Orient Le Jour, which he said published information and allegations on the suspect who allegedly opened fire on the helicopter, before the man was handed over to judicial authorities. The newspaper "deserves to be handed over to judicial authorities for the headline it ran on the "criminal" ... before the court issued its verdict," he said.
The FPM leader also came to the defense of Lebanon's judicial system, saying no convict in Lebanon was imprisoned for their beliefs. "We are tried for our acts, whether Fatah al-Islam prisoners or others. No one is imprisoned for their beliefs," he said.
"The press reports that we are falling apart ... Unfortunately, this sort of thought only adds to our national loss. But I thank the press for the publicity, for the people have discovered that, no matter what we do, we will be targeted," Aoun said.
On the recent turbulence in northern Lebanon, Aoun said, "We know that the security incidents did not come about randomly. There are people, with political backing, who are assigned to create problems ... We request that the security forces do what is necessary to uncover these networks and their affiliations. We cannot live under rumors from now on."
Asked if planned to travel to the north, Aoun said it was his duty, and that he would do so "when the security situation is appropriate."
He also applauded General Jean Kahwaji on his appointment as army commander, and also commented on last week's shooting of a military helicopter.
"We congratulate the army on appointing a new leader ... and wish him luck in his new mission. The army's success is the nation's success. The military remains the mother institution that the Lebanese people can rely on in difficult times," Aoun told reporters at his residence in Rabiyeh.
