NNA - Caretaker Minister of Information Ziad Al-Makary called on the international community and the Francophone group to intervene immediately to stop the cycle of violence that Lebanon is experiencing, saying: "We call for decisive action to condemn the continued violations of our territorial sovereignty by Israel and to fully implement Security Council Resolution 1701 within the internationally recognized borders of Lebanon."
"The Israeli violation of Lebanese sovereignty has been made 57,000 times in Lebanese airspace, sea and land, thus Israel is violating Resolution 1701 even before the strikes of recent weeks. We therefore call for decisive action to condemn the continued violations of our territorial sovereignty by Israel and to fully implement Security Council Resolution 1701 within the internationally recognized borders of Lebanon," he added.
Al-Makary stressed the need for not allowing the values on which democracy and international relations are based to be mocked.
Minister Makary also spoke about the situation of the Lebanese displaced to safe places in light of the aggression on Lebanon, saying: “There are 1.2 million displaced people, forced to leave their homes, properties, livelihoods and memories. These internal displacements lead to the aggravation of the catastrophic economic situation and the deterioration of our fragile infrastructure. Meanwhile, the blood is still flowing. More than 2,000 people have lost their lives to date and more than 10,000 others have been injured."
“Hospitals in Lebanon can no longer accommodate these numbers, children can no longer go to school like their peers around the world...In addition to these elements, there are about two million displaced Syrians for more than 13 years, which is a frightening number because it represents 40% of the population of Lebanon, which constitutes an existential threat to Lebanon," Makary went on.
The Minister's remarks came during a speech he delivered on the third day of the 19th Francophone Summit taking place in Paris.
On the sidelines of the summit, Minister of Information met with French President Emmanuel Macron, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Moroccan Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch, and Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly.
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