Head of Syrian National Coalition calls to withdraw Hezbollah fighters from Syria

The head of the Syrian National Coalition Hadi al- Bahra has called on the Lebanese government to exert pressure on the Lebanese Hezbollah militia to withdraw its fighters from Syria, Anadolu news agency reported.

The Syrian National Coalition is Syria’s main opposition alliance.

Al- Bahra’s remarks came during the 142nd Session of the Arab League Council of Arab Foreign Ministers in Cairo.

He said: “We emphasize our absolute rejection of compromising the security of Lebanon or tampering with its stability and we hope the Lebanese government would exert pressure to defuse the tension, by obliging Hezbollah militia to withdraw its fighters from Syria.”

Hezbollah acknowledged earlier that members of its militia were fighting in Syria alongside the regime leader Bashar Al-Assad which has led to a spill-over of the violence into Lebanon.

Al- Bahra said: “Although the Lebanese government has distanced itself from interfering in the Syrian affairs, this does not mean that the government abandons its responsibility towards the Syrian refugees on its territory.”

Al- Bahra commented that tyranny is one of the reasons that led to spreading terrorism in the region, and that no one can eliminate terrorism without removing its underlying causes, namely the Syrian regime. He called on the Arab League to take a compelling decision to force Bashar al-Assad to step down.

He said: “The regime spreads terrorism, and today the Free Syrian Army fighters lead battles against the criminality of the Assad regime and terrorism of the Islamic State, despite the lack of resources and scarcity of weapons, but they are standing like mountains in the face of this cancer that is spreading in the region.” He added: “The existence of the regime is a suitable environment for terrorism to grow and a democratic transitional government is important to end extremism.”

Western and regional countries fear the repercussions of the rise and spread of terrorist groups following the control of IS of large areas in Iraq and Syria.

Al- Bahra added: “The intransigence and arrogance of the Syrian regime by distancing itself from its Arab brothers act like barrier to achieving the League’s goal.”

Arab League member states differ over handing Syria’s seat to the opposition coalition due to “legal barriers,” Arab League officials say.

The 142nd session of the Arab League Council began Sunday. The attending ministers are scheduled to discuss 30 items and a draft resolution drawn up by the League’s permanent delegates during the past two days on a number of issues, focusing predominantly on the Palestinian and Syrian issues and the conditions in Libya and Iraq.