Attempts to resolve a dispute in the Chouf Mountain - that claimed the lives of two companions of Lebanese Minister of State for Displaced Affairs Saleh al-Gharib - have stumbled at new obstacles, as the leader of the Lebanese Democratic Party MP Talal Arslan, reiterated his insistence on referring the case to the Judicial Council.
He added that Gharib would not participate in an upcoming cabinet session before seeing the case settled.
This came amid efforts to resume holding of government sessions, which were halted a month ago following the Chouf incident.
Speaker Nabih Berri and Prime Minister Saad Hariri discussed the developments in a meeting on Monday, after which Hariri left without giving any statement. Berri’s sources said that the meeting focused on the government issue, stressing that efforts were still underway.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah called on Monday for the resumption of the cabinet sessions.
Minister of Youth and Sports Mohammed Fneish stressed the need to “avoid the disruption of the government”, which he said was “a very negative indicator.”
He pointed that some experts provided figures showing that “political differences cost much greater than economic problems.”
Arslan demanded Monday that the investigation concerning the recent dispute be referred to the judicial Council – a request rejected by former MP Walid Jumblatt’s Progressive Socialist Party (PSP).
“We didn’t invent the Judicial Council. It’s the logical recourse when a minister is subjected to an armed ambush,” Arslan said during the conference alongside Gharib.
On June 30, Gharib’s convoy was involved in a confrontation with supporters of the PSP, which resulted in the deaths of two of the minister’s bodyguards, while a third individual was also injured.
