Mikati, Jumblatt engage in row over Syrian deportees

Lebanon’s expulsion to Damascus of 14 Syrian citizens has sparked a political row between Prime Minister Najib Mikati and MP Walid Jumblatt. While Mikati has defended the General Security decision to deport the 14 men last week after they were accused of criminal offenses, Jumblatt has said he does not consider the Lebanese authorities’ decision to be persuasive. “Do you want the country to be exposed to security risks?” Mikati asked in remarks published Monday by local newspaper As-Safir. “Those who were deported pose a threat to the daily security of Lebanese citizens because of their criminal cases,” he added. Jumblatt, however, has been critical of the decision since the men were deported Wednesday, and continued his criticism in Monday’s As-Safir. “I am not convinced of the findings presented by the General Security,” he told the newspaper. “I am against the handover of any person to Syria under the current circumstances, whether he is a criminal or a political activist or an ordinary citizen, because I cannot guarantee their safety under the current circumstances,” Jumblatt added. Mikati said he believed Jumblatt had not read his statement carefully. “MP Jumblatt did not read my complete statement,” Mikati said. “He read it his way, while my position is based on a balance between the requirements of law, stability and respect for [international] human rights law.” The expulsion of 14 Syrians from Lebanon last week caused local and international alarm. Both the U.S. and the EU have voiced concern regarding the deportations via their envoys to Lebanon. In a statement released Friday, General Security reiterated that the 14 Syrian deportees had committed violations and criminal acts on Lebanese territory including theft, forgery, attempted rape and assault, adding that the Syrian government had nothing to do with their deportation. An-Nahar newspaper quoted a security source Monday as saying that many Syrians had been deported recently. The source said the process was “in full swing," and the number of those deported had reached "hundreds." From: The Daily Star