BEIRUT, Lebanon - Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea on Monday defended Premier Fouad Saniora's government, denying it was trying to Islamize the country and saying the Maronite Bishops' statement has been used for political ends.

He said a Christian religious authority has asked Saniora to remove Great Friday from the calendar of official holidays and that the government didn't take the decision on its own.

The move was part of a government effort to decrease the number of public holidays with the objective of increasing productivity.

"Why accuse Saniora about it," Geagea wondered during a press conference he held in Mirab.

"We regret the political use of the latest statement issued by the Bishops," he said.

Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir also said Sunday that the statement of the Council of Maronite Bishops has been "manipulated for political purposes."

"We stress that such a manipulation has nothing to do with us," Sfeir said.

The Patriarch stressed that the Maronite church is "neutral" as far as the split between Christian leaders regarding the ongoing political crisis.

Geagea, who is a member of the anti-Syrian March 14 alliance, also told reporters that the biggest ownership of land by foreigners was done as part of "Sannine Zenith" project.

He accused pro-Damascus President Emile Lahoud of being behind the project which Saniora objected.

The Bishops' statement said the various Lebanese governments have legalized the sale of seven million square meters of property in 14 years to non-Lebanese owners.

Such a trend, they warned, could lead to selling out most of Lebanon and Lebanese citizens would "one day find out that they are strangers in their country."

Geagea said the foreign ownership law had been issued in 2001 when Saniora wasn't yet prime minister.

"What does Saniora have to do with this," he asked.

He also lamented that the treaty on Children's rights in Islam was being used to "terrorize the Christians" and tell them that the government is trying to Islamize Lebanon.

The Bishops, in their statement, criticized Saniora's government of violating the constitutionally-guaranteed freedom of belief by taking a decision to join the treaty.

About accusations of recruiting security officers by contracts without going through the series of required tests, Geagea said: "the percentage of Christians in the Internal Security Forces is the highest in all government institutions."

On Saturday, the government said that there are now 33.04% of Christians in the ISF, an increase from 28.85% during previous governments.

"Premier Saniora, in all his statements…stresses the importance of keeping the balance between the Lebanese," Geagea said.

He accused Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah of wanting to Islamize Lebanon, saying that in a 1982 speech the opposition leader talks about plans to make Lebanon an Islamic state.

"Is Prime Minister Saniora trying to Islamize Lebanon or others are seeking to do so?" he asked. -Naharnet