Statement on the Syrian-Lebanese Tension

Cairo, Egypt, April 15, 2013 – For weeks now, forces belonging to Hezballah have targeted villages inside Syria, located on the border of Syria and Lebanon. Hezballah deployed forces into some border villages and took control of those areas. The Free Syrian Army was forced to respond to these repeated aggressions. These outbreaks of violent clashes between Hezballah guerillas and FSA forces have put civilians living in those border areas at significant risk. We believe that negotiations can help end these violations and save innocent civilians in the area from falling victim to the violence caused by these aggressions.

The Syrian Coalition calls on the Lebanese government to exert control over its borders and put an immediate stop to Hezballah's military operations on Syrian territory. The Lebanese government has until now maintained political distance, and turned a blind eye to Hezballah's destructive policies, their interferences in Syrian affairs, their siding with the criminal Assad regime, and their terrorizing of Syrian refugees in Lebanon. We call upon the Lebanese government to take action against Hezballah's aggressions and do everything within their means to ensure the safety of the innocent civilians on the Syrian Lebanese border.

After their recent announcement of a state of alert in Hermel Bekaa, we ask the Lebanese Army to exercise restraint and wisdom prior to taking action. We remind our Lebanese brothers that the primary source of gunfire and violence is the criminal Assad regime. The Assad regime is the one who possess heavy weaponry, and it is the one who carried out several aerial strikes on the safe villages of Biqaa.

The Syrian Coalition's primary concern is the safety of civilians in these areas. Due to the sensitivity of the situation on the border of Syria and Lebanon, we call on the Free Syrian Army Battalions in Homs to exercise restraint and to respect the sovereign borders of Lebanon.

We ask for Mercy for our martyrs, health for our wounded, freedom for our prisoners, and victory for our blessed revolution.

Long live Syria and its people, free and with honor.