Salam Calls for Action to Prevent Situation from 'Getting Out of Control'

Prime Minister Tammam Salam warned that the security situation in Lebanon “could get out of control” if a clear and urgent security plan was not implemented by the Lebanese authorities.

In remarks to As Safir daily published on Wednesday, Salam said: “What's happening in (the northeastern town of) Arsal and its surroundings is very dangerous.”

“I am afraid that the situation could go out of control if it remains the same,” he said.

Salam warned against strife, saying the authorities were seeking to “contain it.”

Hizbullah gunmen and Shiite locals closed off Arsal's only road to the rest of Lebanon by erecting a sandbagged checkpoint after several rocket attacks on Shiite towns surrounding it and following the infiltration of rebels from Syria into the town.

The blockade led to road closures across Lebanon Tuesday. Sunni demonstrators used burning tires to close key roads in Beirut and elsewhere.

The premier warned that the road closures are the result of tension between the two communities.

“There is a pressing need to find an urgent security plan for (the northern city of) Tripoli and Arsal,” he told As Safir.

The Lebanese army should also take “firm decisions because it has the necessary cover,” he said.

The newspaper said that Salam has asked Army Commander Gen. Jean Qahwaji to strike with an iron fist in Tripoli and the eastern Bekaa Valley.

“The situation is no longer bearable,” As Safir quoted him as saying.

“You should be decisive without asking anyone,” he reportedly told Qahwaji. “I am the Sunni prime minister and I am giving you the (political) cover.”

Salam has also reportedly urged Hizbullah during a phone conversation with Minister Mohammed Fneish to contribute to efforts to contain the situation in the Bekaa.

“The party can play a big role in that regard,” As Safir quoted him as saying.

“Although clans and families in the region have their own decisions, the party can have an influence on them,” he said.

“You should help us control the situation on the streets to avoid a strife that we all reject,” Salam told Fneish.