BEIRUT: Information Minister Ramzi Joreige pleaded Thurday for the media to stop digging into the secret hostage negotiations and publishing leaked details about the case, threatening legal actions against those who do not comply.
“The negotiations of the captive servicemen must be carried out in extreme discretion to ensure the safety of the hostages,” Joreige told a news conference after meeting with media publishers at his ministry.
“Disclosing [details] weakens the bargaining power [of the government] and harms civil peace.”
He added: “I call on all media to limit themselves to coverage and not comment on news concerning the servicemen to protect the greater good of the country,” Joreige said, warning that he will not hesitate to take violators to court.
“Lebanese law, and the penal law in particular, condemn such behavior, which could be interpreted as exposing Lebanon to hostile attacks, weakening the nationalist sentiment or inciting tensions that threaten civil peace and public safety,” the minister said.
Militants belonging to ISIS and the Nusra Front are still holding around 25 Army soldiers and policemen on the outskirts of the northeastern town of Arsal.
The jihadis abducted more than 30 servicemen during a five-day battle with the Army in August. They have since released eight and killed four.
The secrecy surrounding negotiations for their release has drawn the ire of the hostages' families, who have been camped outside the Grand Serail in Downtown Beirut for two months to pressure the government to speed up talks.
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