PARIS, Jan. 29 (UPI) -- Lebanese rebel Gen. Michel Aoun declared Saturday he will return to Lebanon before general elections in May, ending 14 years of exile in France.
Aoun, a former army commander and staunch opponent of Syria's presence in Lebanon, made the announcement after meeting with Christian Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir who is in Paris on an official visit.
"I am going back to Lebanon before the elections," said Aoun. "I know that some are surprised. but it is a natural matter for me to return home."
Aoun said he will join the opposition "in order to wage together the battle of recovering Lebanon's sovereignty and independence."
He was alluding to the Christian opposition and the Progressive Socialist Party of Druze leader Walid Jumblat, both of which are pressing for Syria's withdrawal from Lebanon and an end of political hegemony and interference in Lebanese domestic affairs.
Aoun went into exile in France in 1991 after failing to drive the Syria army out of Lebanon by force.
