The Guardians of the Cedars Party issued the following communiqué:

The amazing victory achieved by the Army in Nahr Al-Bared, in spite of the deteriorating political climate surrounding it, is far greater than a mere political victory over a bunch of butchers or the recovery of a camp from a terrorist gang. It is indeed the victory of the forces of good over the forces of evil, the restitution of the nation’s dignity, trampled for decades by the cowardice and short-sightedness of the Lebanese political establishment on one hand, and by the boots of the Syrian-Palestinian crime tandem on the other hand.

In order for this victory not to be wasted, and with it the lives of the martyrs, it should be generalized and put to the service of the highest national interest by adopting a new security policy based on decisiveness and long term vision in dealing with the general prevalence of terrorism that has metastasized like a cancer across the country, and also based on drawing the conclusions and lessons from the dangerous events of Nah Al-Bared.

1 – From now on, there should no longer be tolerance with terrorism. The policy of ignoring its growth in the other camps should be terminated because time is on its side and not on the side of the government. Which means the immediate focus on dealing with all the similar terrorist organizations that are present everywhere and every camp before they get out of hand, which should be done according to measures of precaution within a policy of preemptive self-defense, and without waiting for political decisions that may never happen. Waiting may be too costly as is the case with Nahr Al-Bared, or we will lose politically what the Army won on the battlefield.

2 – Terrorism should be dealt with on the basis of eradicating it from the roots and without distinction between one organization or another, between “Fatah Al-Islam” and “Fatah Al-Intifada” and “Fatah Arafat” and all the other Fatahs that always believed that the road to Palestine goes through Lebanon.

3 – Open the dossier of the Palestinian refugees wide open beginning with disarming them in compliance with applicable international resolutions, then begin a broad and active diplomatic campaign aimed at host countries, in preparation for deporting the refugees wither to these countries or to the Palestinian territories.

4 – Accelerate the request for international assistance in controlling the borders with Syria and prevent the influx of weapons and gunmen into Lebanon, and by the same token, dispense with using the Arab League as a mediator that has become an expert in failed initiatives.

The victory of the Army has opened a small crack in the great wall of Lebanese despair. It has lit a glimmer of hope in the hearts of the Lebanese people and returned their trust in their country. We should be careful not to diminish this victory by shoving it into the ongoing political bazaar. We should not miss the opportunity of exploiting it in the proper and sound national interest.

Lebanon, at your service
Abu Arz
June 22, 2007