Hezbollah has barely reacted to Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea’s presidential nomination and is acting as if the matter does not interest the party at all, despite the upcoming election being the party’s primary concern within the political sphere.
Hezbollah officials are known to be proficient in the art of silence and timing as well as a number of other equally important things: sharp eyes, wide smiles and, as is the norm, comments that comprise only a few words.
In a quick summary of recent developments, a high-ranking Hezbollah leader told The Daily Star that Qalamoun, Yabroud, Rankous and other towns on the Syrian side of the border were now under the party’s complete control. He did not elaborate.
Additionally, the official said the security plan in Tripoli and Arsal was being implemented with the coordination of Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk and Justice Minister Ashraf Rifi, with the latter communicating daily with senior Hezbollah security official Wafiq Safa on the thornier files. The lines of communication with the Future Movement are also now open to address several issues, a marked improvement on the situation before.
“All of these issues which have been a sharp political struggle in Lebanon are now being dealt with and that is part of a regional and international agreement which calls for the neutralization of Lebanon as much as possible from the consequences of the acute Syrian crisis and reviving democratic and parliamentary life,” the official said.
“The notable dangers in Lebanon and the region are the cases of the takfiri groups, which seek to ignite absurd wars and sectarian Shiite-Sunni strife, and that is what we aim to deal with along with other political parties, as long as the international and regional umbrella provides a favorable climate for Lebanon to move toward stability and security,” he added.
The primary concern remains the presidential election and Geagea’s nomination, the latter of which the Hezbollah official refused to directly comment upon, saying instead: “Since when is the nomination of a Lebanese president done through a news conference and election campaigns through Facebook and social media sites?”
He said the party was waiting for other March 14 groups to announce their stance on the issue, after which it will make clear its position, although he stressed that Hezbollah’s candidate of preference was Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun.
According to the official, the choice of a Lebanese president will be made through an international and regional arrangement. He added that there were specific powers working on this file, and that this led to an American-Iranian rapprochement as well as U.S. President Barack Obama’s recent visit to Saudi Arabia. There are also indications of a growing Saudi-Iranian understanding – whose breakthroughs are reflected in the domestic situation – with further steps to be taken in this area, most notably in relation to the presidential election.
According to the Hezbollah official, Geagea has taken a hasty step that is outside the current regional efforts aimed at finding an agreement that will help Lebanon “to hold back the fires of Syria.”
Geagea’s decision, he said, was not about getting into Baabda Palace as much as proving that he is a Christian leader first and is able “to block the road and stop any possible compromise between the March 8 and March 14 groups, with the firm conviction that any group in Lebanon cannot secure the quorum of half plus one.”
He also added that Geagea’s nomination was now a problem within the March 14 camp, which did not wholly back his candidacy. He also went over the Christian consensus that Bkirki had asked from all Christian sides as it publically announced that it would like the arrival of a strong candidate for the presidency.
“ Hezbollah usually leaves Speaker Nabih Berri the task of rounding corners and finding magical solutions to local issues,” the party official said, adding that Berri would appoint a new session date.
The thrust of it is that the March 8 candidate is Aoun, the leader said.
However, he noted that outside forces would also have their say, as would centrist forces such as the Progressive Socialist Party and its leader Walid Jumblatt. He also pointed to the wide range of choices, including Army chief Gen. Jean Kahwagi or Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh, which would call for amending the Constitution. There is also the possibility of Jean Obeid due to his distinctive relationship with Syrian President Bashar Assad as he could be a link between the Eastern and the Western world.
A senior politician who has been part of the election of more than one Lebanese president over the years is more philosophical.
“The Lebanese, or the political parties, chose chaos instead of Mikhael Daher in the 1988 elections, which was preceded by Parliament electing Bashir Gemayel until Amine Gemayel made it through, and the same thing happened afterward with Rene Mouawad’s election up until Elias Hrawi,” he said as he walked in his garden in a Beirut suburb. “In the Lebanese presidential elections there are magic hats from which emerges a president who is not at all expected.”
The politician stressed that it was necessary to read the regional situation in order to approach the presidential election reasonably. There are a series of international understandings that are controlling the Middle East, he said, but the agreements may not be developed enough to elect someone yet, and it is possible that the elections will be postponed for a few months despite the fact that regional indications suggest they will happen on time.
He said it seems “there is an ongoing search for a sophisticated individual characterized by awareness and maturity to take the first seat in Lebanon and to steer [the country] during an exceptional phase in Lebanon’s history that could be the most dangerous and the most sensitive” it has ever seen.
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