UNITED NATIONS, August 5 (RIA Novosti) - Following the attacks in Arsal, Lebanon, by violent extremist groups, the UN Security Council expressed support for the efforts of the Lebanese Armed Forces and the Internal Security Forces in their fight against terrorism and in preventing attempts to undermine the stability of Lebanon.
In a press statement issued in New York, the Security Council said the attacks “led to at least 14 deaths, 86 injured, and 22 missing among the Lebanese security forces, in addition to civilian casualties.”
The local government estimates that at least 3,000 families from Arsal have so far been displaced.
The Security Council stressed “the need to further efforts to build up the capabilities of the Lebanese security forces to counter terrorism and address other security challenges.”
Noting the continued lack of a Lebanese president, the Security Council “urged the Parliament to uphold Lebanon’s long standing democratic tradition and to work to ensure that Presidential elections take place without further delay.”
The Security Council concluded by appealing “to all Lebanese parties to preserve national unity in the face of attempts to undermine the country’s stability, consistent with their commitment in the Baabda Declaration, and stressed the importance for all Lebanese parties to respect Lebanon’s policy of disassociation and to refrain from any involvement in the Syrian crisis.”
