BEIRUT: Justice Minister Ashraf Rifi stressed Sunday there would be no more rounds of violence in the city of Tripoli, and that the newly implemented security plan was still ongoing and had the support of residents.
“The security plan is ongoing and the residents of Tripoli and the north support it, and their desire to live is the desire of every peaceful citizen seeking normal life,” the minister added.
Rifi met with the representatives of two rival families, Al-Aswad and Al-Liza, as well as elders and sheikhs from Bab al-Tabbaneh, to pave the way for reconciliation.
Rifi said he was working to achieve serious reconciliation and compromises between the residents.
Some 200 arrest warrants for wanted suspects in the city and other parts of the country have been issued as part of Tripoli’s security plan. The city has been plagued by Syria-linked clashes between the majority Sunni neighborhood of Bab al-Tabbaneh and the mostly Alawite Jabal Mohsen.
“Most of the wanted men are now outside of the country, and according to confirmed intelligence, Rifaat Eid is outside of the country, contrary to some reports,” the minister said.
Military Prosecutor Judge Saqr Saqr charged Eid, the Arab Democratic Party’s politburo chief, of belonging to an armed terror organization and carrying out terrorist acts in Tripoli.
According to Rifi, compensating families and individuals whose homes have been damaged by the fighting in both neighborhoods was in the works.
The Army’s assessment committees will begin to survey and quantify losses and damages midnext-week in both neighborhoods, the minister said, after which point the development plan, which aims to provide employment opportunities, will be implemented.
“The government has returned to Tripoli, with justice and equality,” Rifi said, thanking former premier Saad Hariri for his backing in the implementation of the security plan.
Also Sunday, MPs from Baalbek-Hermel held a meeting at their offices to discuss the latest Army-led crackdown to restore stability in the region.
The bloc noted “the enormous sacrifices made by the Army over the years,” in a statement read by Hezbollah MP Ali Moqdad.
It also called on all political and social officials to “support and cooperate with the Army and the security forces to provide security and stability.”
The security plan that was launched in the Bekaa Valley last week saw raids in Brital, an area once considered to be off-limits, in search for wanted individuals. The Army also set up checkpoints in several Bekaa Valley towns to look for wanted individuals.
The Internal Security Forces’ unit in Arsal confiscated nine vehicles over the weekend, six of which were stolen and three of which were without license plate numbers, according to the ISF’s General-Directorate.
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