05/10/2010 Lebanon is in the middle of political crisis. Its people are pinned in front of their televisions monitoring the latest development that took the country all of a sudden. Syria issued 33 arrest warrants against Lebanese and others related to the lawsuit filed in Damascus by former General Security chief Jamil as-Sayyed.
The cabinet convened Monday while the Syrian arrest warrants invaded this session unexpectedly. Information Minister Tarek Mitri told reporters that the ministers agreed to task Justice Minister Ibrahim Najjar to follow up with Syria on the issue of the arrest warrants issued by the Syrian judiciary. He added that the cabinet also affirmed its commitment to strengthening Syrian-Lebanese relations.
President Michel Sleiman said that he had hoped Syria would not issue the warrants. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Saad Hariri warned against political escalation and said he is working to build better ties with Syria, Mitri said.
14 March alliance was quick to denounce the arrest warrants claiming they have no legal value. They commented that the Syrian judge who issued the warrants knows that he committed a “grave error”.
Lebanon is “bound” to apply the Syrian arrest warrants, Syrian newspaper Al-Watan quoted a senior Lebanese legal source as saying, pointing out that there is a judicial agreement between the two countries that goes back to 1951. “This agreement is binding as an international treaty between two sovereign states where they are committed to implement their obligations, including specific legal matters such as exchanging arrest warrants and notifications,” the source said.
He added that if this Agreement may be implemented “previous notifications and recent arrest warrants should be taken into consideration.” “But since MPs, former ministers and judges are the target, then the Lebanese authorities should take the decision,” the source indicated.
As-Sayyed told Al-Jadid television yesterday that arrest warrants could include Saad Hariri if he was found to be guilty in the false witnesses' case. "During the investigation, police intelligence Chief Wissam Hasan or State Prosecutor Saeed Mirza could testify that they brought the false witnesses to meet Hariri's desire," Sayyed said, "At this point, Hariri is likely to be included in the arrest warrants."Apart from the judicial impact of the warrants, its political repercussions began to emerge with the confused reactions of the March 14 alliance, and the issue’s invasion to Monday’s Cabinet meeting. Observers see in it a justification for the political confusion which will lead to deadlock for the prime minister and his political team.
They analyze that the Syrian arrest warrants rings the bell of toppling Saad Hariri especially after his security and informative apparatus became “besieged”, An-Nashra electronic page said.
Important developments have preceded the issuance of the arrest warrants including the surprise visit of Saudi King Abdullah’s son and advisor Prince Abdul Aziz to Damascus last Wednesday night (September 29) and his meeting upon his arrival with the Syrian President. Abdul Aziz heard from Bashar Al-Assad a list of flaws on the performance of Saad Hariri, Al-Akhbar newspaper reported. At top of which was that Hariri has not implemented any of the pledges he made during his five visits to Damascus.
“If Hariri was unable actually to implement these pledges, let him clear the space for another one who can carry out this mission,” the Syrian president told the Saudi convoy according to Al-Akhbar.
Uprooted Palestinian
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