Nasrallah Denies Blocking Negotiations in Troops Case, Rejects Anti-IS Coalition
Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on Tuesday denied claims that his group is preventing the government from negotiating over the Lebanese troops held by jihadist militants.
“It is normal to engage in negotiations and we had negotiated (with Israel) in an indirect manner over captives and the bodies of martyrs. Nowadays, we have martyrs and missing fighters (in Syria) and we have been negotiating for months, because this is the normal approach,” Nasrallah said in a televised address on the latest developments.
“We have never rejected the principle of negotiations,” he stressed.
“Anyone telling you that Hizbullah has rejected the principle of negotiations would be lying for political motives. We have never rejected the principle of negotiations at all,” Nasrallah underlined.
He noted that Hizbullah wants the negotiations to be conducted “from a position of strength.”
“No one should deal with the kidnappers from a helpless position and all cards of strength must be put on the table before going to negotiations,” he said.
Hizbullah's leader pointed out that the mediators as well as the kidnappers “must be informed of Lebanon's cards of strength.”
Nasrallah lamented that “Lebanon has been suffering political humiliation for weeks due to some political practices.”
“Everything said by some politicians is baseless. We have told officials that the negotiators should inform (the government) of the abductors' demands so that we study them before taking the decision. Anyone saying otherwise is a liar and hypocrite,” Nasrallah added.
He said the government has the right to say “we won't negotiate under the pressure of killing and slaughter.”
“It is normal to seek the help of friends and even rivals and to listen to the demands and engage in negotiations, but bowing to the death threats is unacceptable,” added Nasrallah.
He was referring to the execution of three captive troops -- Ali al-Sayyed, Abbas Medlej and Mohammed Hamiyeh – at the hands of the Islamic State and al-Nusra Front.
Both extremist groups have warned that more captives will be executed if the Lebanese authorities do not meet their demands.
The soldiers and policemen were taken hostage during deadly clashes between the two groups and the Lebanese army in and around the Bekaa border town of Arsal in early August.
“We should keep this case away from overbidding and political calculations,” Nasrallah emphasized.
He accused some sides of waging a “distortion campaign” over the issue of the abductees.
“Everyone should have offered help and cooperation to resolve the case, but unfortunately some parties have turned the case into a substance for debate, sectarian incitement and distortion of facts. They have made demands that exceed the demands of the captors themselves,” Hizbullah's leader added.
“This case is the responsibility of the government before anyone else and everyone must support and cooperate with the government in this issue,” he said.
On Monday, the Muslim Scholars Committee said “those obstructing the negotiations are within the cabinet.” And on Sunday, some families of abducted troops accused Hizbullah of obstructing the negotiations while holding talks with al-Nusra Front to free captive Hizbullah fighters.
Turning to the issue of the coalition formed by the U.S. to fight the IS group, Nasrallah said: “We are against these takfiri movements and we are fighting them. Our stance on these groups and the need to fight them is clear, but the issue of the U.S. military intervention is something else and it must be tackled from many angles.”
“We are against American military intervention and against the international coalition, whether the target is the (Syrian) regime or the IS. Our principled stance does not change from one arena to another and we don't accept that Lebanon become a member of this coalition," Hizbullah's chief noted.
“We are against the coalition because America is the mother and source of terrorism and because it is the ultimate supporter of Zionist state terrorism,” he added.
Nasrallah noted that U.S. President Barack Obama himself has announced that the coalition is aimed at “defending American interests.”
“This is not our business. All peoples in the region have the right to question America's motives,” he added.
The secretary-general also pointed out that it is not in Lebanon's interest to be in the U.S.-led international coalition, “not in line with the dissociation policy but because that poses threats to Lebanon.”
Lebanon “does not need” to be part of this coalition, he added.
“Lebanon can fight terror and it has succeeded in doing so through the army, security forces and perseverance,” Nasrallah said.
The U.S.-led coalition had started carrying out strikes against the IS and against al-Qaida-linked groups in Syria on Tuesday morning.
Syria had warned that any military action taken on its territory without coordination would be an "aggression" but it said Tuesday that Washington had notified it before the air strikes began.
Y.R.
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