MP Ghassan Hasbani from the Lebanese Forces-led Strong Republic parliamentary bloc said in an interview with “The Voice of All Lebanon” on Monday that “a truce in South Lebanon is part of Security Council Resolution 1701,” stressing, however, that “it is only a temporary solution.”
“To what extent will this be enough to ease tensions on the ground?” he asked.
According to Hasbani, nothing could prevent the expansion of the war, which, he said, “has already spread north of the Litani River, after the rules of engagement that prevailed between Hezbollah and the Israeli army were broken.”
“This situation can be very serious if it is not quickly contained,” Hasbani warned.
Commenting on Sunday’s remarks by Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah that the opening of the southern front would strengthen Lebanon’s negotiating cards in delineating its borders with Israel, Hasbani questioned who would be negotiating on behalf of Lebanon in the absence of a president and a fully functional government.
“Electing a president is imperative,” he stressed, adding, “In the absence of a head of state, Lebanon will have no chance of adopting a position that would protect it from war, and (post-Gaza conflict) negotiations would then be led by Iran via Hezbollah.”
