President Michel Suleiman stressed on Friday the importance of the stability Lebanon is experiencing in light of the tense political and security situation in the region. He urged the Lebanese people, on the 37th anniversary of the eruption of the Lebanese civil war, “to derive lessons from conflicts that disregarded national interests and instead served personal and regional gains.”

He hoped the Lebanese would realize “the importance of internal agreements on central national principles and keep all disputes within democratic and constitutional limits.” “There can be no rise for the state without committing to the constitution, which is the only guarantee for the country and its people,” said Suleiman.

The civil war erupted on April 13, 1975.

It pitted various local and regional factions against each other, resulting in the deaths of nearly a fifth of Lebanon’s population.The war ended in 1990 through the Taef Accord.[Naharnet]