Head of the Independence Movement says Lebanon is paying the price of Hezbollah’s involvement in the fighting alongside Syrian regime.

Head of the Independence Movement Michel Moawad urged Hezbollah to withdraw its fighters from Syria and endorse the Baabda Declaration which distances Lebanon from regional conflicts.

Moawad was speaking during a visit to Saint Charbel’s monastery in Punchbowl, Sydney where he met members of the Lebanese expatriate community in Australia.

“Hezbollah’s fighting alongside Assad in Syria under the pretext of defending Lebanon against extremists has backfired and practically invited extremism targeting the innocent Lebanese and mainly the Shiite community,” Moawad said following Sunday’s mass at the monastery.

Moawad added that protecting Lebanon against extremism requires all parties to commit to the tripartite equation of the “land, people and shared values” that was announced by President Michel Sleiman as opposed to Hezbollah’s formula of the “army, resistance and people.”

“President Sleiman announced a responsible and patriotic stance aimed at protecting Lebanon and its people including Hezbollah and its community,” Moawad said.

The commitment of Lebanese expats to the values of freedom and coexistence is also helping Lebanon defend its sovereignty, according to Moawad.

“You preserved the true identity of Lebanon in the past and you continue to do so today with the Lebanese Diaspora,” Moawad told the head of Saint Charbel’s monastery father Joseph Sleiman following a lunch banquet.

“Our identity extends beyond Lebanon’s surface area of 10452 square kilometers and is embodied by the Lebanese Diaspora across the world,” Moawad added.

Through its organization of regular cultural visits to Lebanon, Saint Charbel’s monastery is seeking to maintain close ties between the Lebanese community in Australia and its motherland, Father Joseph Sleiman said.

Moawad praised the role of the Lebanese Maronite Order in Australia, which he said has evolved as an educational institution over the years.

The gathering at the monastery was also attended by President of the World Lebanese Cultural Union Michel Douaihy, Independence Movement Coordinator in Australia Asaad Barakat, and representatives of the Lebanese Forces and Kataeb party in Sydney respectively Charbel Fakhry and Peter Maroun.

Following the meeting at the monastery, Moawad visited the Youssef Bek Karam association in Guildford, Sydney where he met with MPs Tony Issa and Barbara Perry as well as the head of the Maronite league Toufic Keyrouz.

“The association is your home and that of every individual hailing from Zghorta irrespective of his political affiliations,” Sarkis Karam, head of the Youssef Bek Karam association, told Moawad, who in turn stressed the importance of unity among Zghorta residents.