Miqati Confirms Describing Hizbullah as 'Non-malignant' Tumor

W300

Prime Minister Najib Miqati on Sunday confirmed remarks attributed to him by a WikiLeaks document about describing Hizbullah as a “tumor,” but stressed that his words were taken out of context and that he had described the Shiite party as a “non-malignant tumor.”

“Everything published by WikiLeaks about me is true, but some remarks were taken out of context. I did describe Hizbullah as a ‘tumor,’ but I stressed that it is a ‘non-malignant tumor’,” Miqati said in an interview on Al-Jadeed television.

Explaining his position, the premier noted that he considers “any act at the expense of the State as unacceptable and must be removed.”

As to the remarks attributed him by a WikiLeaks cable about Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun, Miqati said: “I might have been asked about a certain stance related to General Aoun and answered it was a ‘joke.’”

The PM said he was “coming under fire” from both his allies and the opposition March 14 camp, but noted that his conscience was clear and that he knows what he wants.

“If you ask me about the ministers whose performance satisfies me the most in the cabinet I will say the two Hizbullah ministers,” he added.

Asked about the controversial issue of the U.N.-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon, Miqati said “the debate on the issue of the STL must stop.”

“There is a U.N. resolution and a tribunal and the implementation of international resolutions should not be optional,” said Miqati, warning that “refraining from implementing the resolutions would pose risk to Lebanon and harm its image.”

“I will not give Israel any alibi by falling under sanctions and jeopardizing Lebanon as a result of failing to implement U.N. resolutions, and my government will abide by all the international resolutions,” the PM vowed.

Addressing Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi’s latest controversial remarks on the Syrian crisis, Hizbullah’s arms and the relations between Lebanon’s communities, Miqati said the patriarch’s remarks “on the Sunnis in Lebanon and Syria need clarification.”

“I will hold a lengthy meeting with him this week to hear his opinion,” he revealed.

Concerning a possible vote on a resolution on Syria at the U.N. Security Council, Miqati noted that Lebanon “cannot vote in favor of any resolution against Syria, but if a resolution was adopted we cannot be selective in implementing U.N. resolutions.”

Comments 17
Default-user-icon Tralala (Guest) over 12 years

This sporting life
Is Forever Changing
A Little to the left
A little to the right

Default-user-icon Le PheneChien (Guest) over 12 years

Let us face it, extremists from any religions are not favorable or accepted. This is what Miqati is calling Tumor, i.e. Nahr EL Bared fighters were mostly sunnis, we are witnessing day after day sections of the countries(Shiites areas) that the ISF cannot enter or get beaten/stormed by sticks and stones until the situation get escalated to the Army and then it get resolved.
These examples are still representing the Lebanese war that we assumed it ended but unfortunately it did not due to these groups supported by external/foreign extremist governments, and please do not mention the MOSSAD and ZIONIST in this subject because it is a strictly sunni-shiite war. (i.e. Gulf nations/Iran)

Default-user-icon MUSTAPHA O. GHALAYINI (Guest) over 12 years

intelligent remarks from a sunni prime minister(for a change).
yalla monseigneur its ur turn , u have to climb from the hole u put urself in.( a small advice rahi, change ur friends.).

Default-user-icon Julian (Guest) over 12 years

mikati be honest is this admission meant to embarrass berri in hassan's eyes

Default-user-icon reformist (Guest) over 12 years

Aoun is a joke and Hezbollah is a tumor, good call Najib.

Default-user-icon Gabby (Guest) over 12 years

Dr. Miqati......re-diagnose them. They are malignant.

Thumb mrbrain over 12 years

I have high respect to Mr Honest Miqati...
MrBrain

Default-user-icon amirmansour (Guest) over 12 years

Tumor.....must be removed.
How
Integrate the militia into the Army as the Army will protect resist and defend the nation of Lebanon not a party not a regime and not a political Mafioso but the Country.

A joke...yes many politicians are a joke not only one.....many.
Praise the hard working and ignore the others....that is politics....that is why you have a Hezbollah hard working ministers and Gibran Edison and the young non effective Karami sports minister who talk about resistance and STL but knows nothing about sports and youth
Well done Mikati

Default-user-icon ASSAAD123 (Guest) over 12 years

بلا تعليق - هذا رئيس وزراء لبنان ؟؟

Default-user-icon Truth (Guest) over 12 years

He didn't specify if it's a sarcoma, or a carcinoma!

Default-user-icon Lancelot DuLac (Guest) over 12 years

How refreshing. For once, one of the people quoted by American diplomacy (as revealed by Wikileaks) does not attack the credibility of Wikileaks, nor state that it is all part of some Zionist conspiracy. He must have realized how ridiculous it would be to deny, like Berri, what everyone knows to be true.

This still doesn't make Mikati anymore credible. The ultimate hypocrisy being that he accepted to be Prime Minister after the coup staged by Hezbollah in opposition to the results of the past elections.

Default-user-icon jabal amel (Guest) over 12 years

what can one say. should we be angry on mikati because he spits on resistance or should we be happy because he admits mistake and became wiser? well, mikati is so far so good, so we should (for now) forget his mistake and just believe he was misleaded, until proven different.

but i'm glad he's on patriotic line again

Default-user-icon Truth (Guest) over 12 years

Jabal Amel, the statements you make under threats are worthless! The mere possession of arms today, by a party that has carefully engineered their credibility on the ground, through veiled threats, direct agression, and open murder, is good enough. Until those arms are removed, the criminals hanged and punished, no value can be drawn from political posturing!

Thumb shab over 12 years

So now it's confirmed, All Wikileaks are true

Thumb shab over 12 years

So now it's confirmed, All Wikileaks are true

Default-user-icon Beiruti (Guest) over 12 years

Malignant or non-malignant, a tumor is an unnatural growth in a body that serves no purpose other than to displace natural organs and natural functions in the body.

Hezbollah is this in the Lebanese body politic. An unnatural growth. Whether it is malignant and will metastasize into consuming the whole body and killing it or whether it will be a benign tumor that just debilitates the body until it is excised by the surgeon's knife, this remains to be seen. But as long as Aoun sheilds the tumor and makes it appear as a natural body organ, the condition will persist.

Missing reformist over 12 years

@reformist : you are the joke man. Stop stealing other's identities hehe
I am the true reformist and I support aoun