NNA - Army Commander, General Joseph Aoun, received in his Yarzeh office today, MP Strida Geagea at the head of a delegation including MPs: Pierre Bou Assi, Fadi Karam, Razi Al-Hajj, Nazih Matta, Jihad Pakradouni and Saeed Al-Asmar, in addition to former MP Joseph Ishaq and the party's security and military communications official, Imad Khoury.

Talks during the meeting centered on the issue of displaced Syrians because of its security, economic, and social repercussions on Lebanon.

The delegation briefed the Army Chief on “the absence of any legal basis, whether international or Lebanese, for the presence of the overwhelming majority of Syrian refugees in Lebanon, which requires them to be legally prosecuted and returned to their country.”

The delegation also focused on “the necessity of controlling the Lebanese-Syrian border to prevent the entry of more illegal refugees into Lebanon.”

It stressed that “the illegal Syrian presence threatens the security and safety of the Lebanese people and threatens general stability in Lebanon, so all state departments must strictly and carefully implement the laws to preserve general stability in the country and the safety of Lebanon."

"As for the international community that helps Syrian refugees, it can help them in Syria and not in Lebanon, especially since there are many safe areas in Syria," the LF delegation underlined.

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