Lebanese leaders scrambled on Monday to contain the repercussions of the shootout in the town of Kfar Matta, where two bodyguards of State Minister for Refugee Affairs Saleh al-Gharib were killed when his convoy came under fire on Sunday.
Asharq Al-Awsat learned that the army carried out several raids in search of suspects and that one person was arrested pending investigations into the case.
Meanwhile, the country’s Supreme Defense Council, which includes the president and security chiefs, held an urgent meeting and took “decisive” measures to restore security to the area and bring to justice those involved.
Leader of the Progressive Socialist Party former MP Walid Jumblatt said on Monday the weekend’s unrest “was not born of the moment, but rather the result of accumulations that started in Choueifat.”
In May 2018, clashes erupted between supporters of the PSP and the Lebanese Democratic Forces, led by MP Talal Arslan, in the Choueifat region in Aley, killing one PSP member.
The PSP has accused Arslan of protecting the suspect and of smuggling him across the border into Syria.
Gharib is a political ally of Arslan, who is close to Hezbollah and the Syrian regime.
Meanwhile, Sunday’s unrest may help in easing the strain in relations between Hariri’s Mustaqbal Movement and the PSP following the recent eruption of a political dispute between them.
“What is important for the movement is that understanding and dialogue prevail among all political forces, particularly between us and the PSP,” Mustaqbal politburo member and former MP Mustafa Alloush told Asharq Al-Awsat on Monday.
PSP senior media officer Rami Rayess said that even in the worst situations, the party had never disassociated itself from the historic relations it enjoys with the Mustaqbal.
“Contacts with the Mustaqbal are moving forward and we continue to exert efforts to restore the relationship with the movement and with its leader, Hariri, who is exerting immense efforts to contain the repercussions of the recent unrest,” he told Asharq Al-Awsat.
Meanwhile, a senior member of the March 14 alliance told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Syrian regime and its allies were seeking to “single out Jumblatt and drag the Mount Lebanon region towards major strife.”
He warned that Sunday’s unrest was more than just a random clash, but reveals that Lebanon and its unique identity in the region were under threat.
