Lebanon’s Geagea: Hariri Resigned because Govt. was Prevented from Functioning

Head of the Lebanese Forces Samir Geagea. (NNA)
Head of the Lebanese Forces Samir Geagea. (NNA)
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Lebanon’s Geagea: Hariri Resigned because Govt. was Prevented from Functioning

Head of the Lebanese Forces Samir Geagea. (NNA)
Head of the Lebanese Forces Samir Geagea. (NNA)

Head of the Lebanese Samir Geagea voiced on Saturday his support for Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s decision to resign, wondering what took him so long.

He said: “He stepped down because the government was not able to practice its authority as was expected of it.”

“The developments of the past eight months left no room for someone to continue on respecting themselves,” he added.

A “shadow government” has been operating instead of the actual cabinet, explained Geagea, which prompted Hariri to take action against it.

The actual government has not been able to take decisions, he stated.

The army, for example, headed towards waging the battle against ISIS in the northeastern border region of Arsal, but “Hezbollah” exploited the battle for its interest, he explained.

The Iranian-backed party usurped the army’s victory to hold negotiations with the ISIS terror group against the interests of the Lebanese people and in favor of issues that have nothing to do with Lebanon, continued the LF chief.

“How do you therefore expect the head of the government to continue in such circumstances?” he wondered.

“For seven months, some ministers have made visits to Syria and met with officials from the Syrian regime as if there is a state in Syria, while in fact it is run by Iranian, Turkish, Jordanian, American and Russian forces,” he said.

“At the same time, they are pressuring the government to appoint an ambassador for Lebanon in Syria. Who will he present his credentials to? There is no state in Syria,” he added.

The only solution to the government crisis lies in President Michel Aoun calling for dialogue talks, stressed Geagea.

The only article of the talks should be setting a roadmap on how to transition from a semi-state to an actual state and everything that this entails, he emphasized.

“Any other alternative will keep us sedated while the disease continues to eat away at Lebanon,” he warned.

“Why should we continue to tolerate boycotts, sanctions, abuse of funds and the loss of tourists and investments?” he asked.

“Why should we continue to tolerate this for the sake of so-called golden equations, which are in fact wooden and destructive as evidenced by where they have led us,” he stressed.

“The only equation we have is that of the Lebanese people and Lebanese state that is ruled by the constitution and Lebanese laws,” he added.

Hariri resigned on Saturday in protest against Iran’s continued meddling in Lebanese internal affairs through its proxy “Hezbollah.”



Israel Orders Evacuation of Area Designated as Humanitarian Zone in Gaza

 A picture taken in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip shows smoke billowing during Israeli army operations in areas east of Khan Younis city on July 26, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement. (AFP)
A picture taken in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip shows smoke billowing during Israeli army operations in areas east of Khan Younis city on July 26, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement. (AFP)
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Israel Orders Evacuation of Area Designated as Humanitarian Zone in Gaza

 A picture taken in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip shows smoke billowing during Israeli army operations in areas east of Khan Younis city on July 26, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement. (AFP)
A picture taken in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip shows smoke billowing during Israeli army operations in areas east of Khan Younis city on July 26, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement. (AFP)

Israel’s military ordered the evacuation Saturday of a crowded part of Gaza designated as a humanitarian zone, saying it is planning an operation against Hamas militants in Khan Younis, including parts of Muwasi, a makeshift tent camp where thousands are seeking refuge.

The order comes in response to rocket fire that Israel says originates from the area. It's the second evacuation issued in a week in an area designated for Palestinians fleeing other parts of Gaza. Many Palestinians have been uprooted multiple times in search of safety during Israel's punishing air and ground campaign.

On Monday, after the evacuation order, multiple Israeli airstrikes hit around Khan Younis, killing at least 70 people, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, citing figures from Nasser Hospital.

The area is part of a 60-square-kilometer (roughly 20-square-mile) “humanitarian zone” to which Israel has been telling Palestinians to flee to throughout the war. Much of the area is blanketed with tent camps that lack sanitation and medical facilities and have limited access to aid, United Nations and humanitarian groups say. About 1.8 million Palestinians are sheltering there, according to Israel's estimates. That's more than half Gaza’s pre-war population of 2.3 million.

The war in Gaza has killed more than 39,100 Palestinians, according to the territory’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between combatants and civilians in its count. The UN estimated in February that some 17,000 children in the territory are now unaccompanied, and the number is likely to have grown since.

The war began with an assault by Hamas fighters on southern Israel on Oct. 7 that killed 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and took about 250 hostages. About 115 are still in Gaza, about a third of them believed to be dead, according to Israeli authorities.