Prominent leader of the Salafist movement in Lebanon failed to deny that the weapons seized at the residence of Sheikh Bilal Deqmaq Friday in Tripoli belonged to him, stressing his right to defend himself.

Al-Shahhal told al-Joumhouriya newspaper that he had the right to own weapons as the situation in the northern city got tense.

The Islamist preacher condemned the seizing of weapons from Deqmaq’s residence while other figures are left unpunished.

"I challenge everyone to prove that I had once assaulted someone, deprived someone of his rights or pointed arms against him although we repeatedly showed our ability to change the course of things and seize control over several areas in the north," he said.

Al-Shahhal slammed plots being schemed against the Sunnis, revealing that he is in the process of declaring a "new phase that is part of the battle being fought in defense of dignity."

For his part, Sheikh Bilal Deqmaq refuted accusations of inciting the establishment of an Islamic emirate in Lebanon, saying that "there are simply no basic factors" for such a project.