Prime Minister Najib Mikati affirmed today, “The diplomatic contacts we are carrying out internationally and in the Arab world and the local meetings are continuing in order to stop the Israeli attacks on Lebanon and its south in particular, and to prevent the spread of the war in Gaza to Lebanon.’ ‘I understand the feeling of fear and anxiety that afflicts the Lebanese as a result of what is happening, and the warning statements of a number of embassies for their citizens to leave Lebanon, but I will not hesitate to make every effort to protect Lebanon,” Mikati told his interlocutors on Sunday. He continued: ‘The meetings and preparations that we are conducting in order to develop an emergency plan to confront what might happen are an essential preventive step out of caution because we are facing an enemy whose bloody history we know well, but at the same time we are reassured that the friends of Lebanon are continuing to make every effort to restore the situation to its normal and contain the worst.” “The measures taken at the airport and by the Middle East Airlines are also out of prevention, caution, and considerations related to risk management, and we have not received any data indicating any serious matter that may happen at the airport, and, God willing, the exceptional measures will be for a short period until the situation returns to normal,” Mikati underscored. He indicated that “in times of crises and tribulations, rumors and false news abound, and part of it falls within the framework of psychological warfare against the Lebanese to frustrate them. But I am confident that our people will overcome this ordeal like previous ones, and will not allow the enemy to undermine them and their steadfastness.” Mikati concluded by saying: ‘At the beginning of the crisis, we preferred to adopt silent action away from the media, but some took advantage of that to launch an unjustified campaign against the government and create panic among the people. To confront this, I decided to keep the Lebanese updated on what we are doing, and I call on our people to trust our efforts to keep all harm away from Lebanon.”

Source: National News Agency – Lebanon