“They will not undermine the idea of ​​Lebanon.” Bassil comments on targeting churches (video)

The head of the Free Patriotic Movement, MP Gebran Bassil, considered that targeting churches and mosques in southern Lebanon “is neither a war mistake nor collateral damage,” but rather “an intentional and programmed act,” as he put it.

In “A Minute with Gibran,” titled “Lebanon the Message,” Bassil said: “When the Church of St. George in Yaroun is destroyed, the statue of Christ and the statue of the Virgin Mary are destroyed, and the churches in Alma al-Shaab, Sarda, Dardaghia, Nabatieh, and Dibal are damaged, this is not the fault of an individual’s war nor collateral damage.”

He believed that “this is an intentional and programmed act by a mono-religious state that does not recognize other religions,” stressing that “strikes on churches and mosques are not only an attack on religious centers, but an attack on the meaning of Lebanon and the idea of ​​its diversity.”

Bassil added, “What is happening is not against a specific sect, but rather against Lebanon in all its diversity, and against the idea of ​​remaining a meeting place for religions in this East.”

He also pointed out that “what is happening in Palestine and Jerusalem reflects this extremism,” saying: “When we see ministers in the Israeli government justifying spitting on Christians in Palestine, and when we see attacks targeting a nun in Jerusalem and preventing Christians from celebrating the Great Eid in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, we realize that this extremism does not only target the land of Lebanon, but also human dignity and the idea of ​​coexistence.”

Bassil stressed that “defending Lebanon is not only a defense of land and borders, but of the human being as a value, freedom of belief, and the Lebanese remaining rooted in his land.”

He concluded by stressing that “Lebanon cannot be broken,” calling for “national awareness and adherence to Lebanon’s agenda, not foreign agendas,” adding: “They can target the church and the mosque, but they will not undermine the idea of ​​Lebanon, and we can protect the message and Lebanon will remain 10,452 square kilometers.”