The Saydet el-Jabal gathering and the National Council to End the Iranian Occupation in Lebanon issued a press release calling to reject Hezbollah’s imposed presidency candidates.
“Here comes Hezbollah carrying out a live ammunition exercise in the presence of local and foreign media, in an unprecedented show of force that is only meant to send a message to internal and international communities,” the statement read.
In the context of their joint meeting, the Saydet el-Jabal gathering and the Council said that this act “marginalizes the role of the Lebanese Army and Resolution 1701, less than a month after Iran’s Foreign Minister visited the South to say that Iran is on Israel’s borders.”
They considered that “Hezbollah’s maneuvers could be read in conjunction with the regional changes. Hezbollah is trying to establish its predominance within Lebanon, particularly in the presidency battle.”
In a statement, they added that “through the Aramata exercise, Hezbollah has linked its weapons to the Lebanese Presidency on the basis that any new president must not only recognize the party’s weapons but also guarantee its freedom to use them, even in the absence of any Lebanese consensus.”
In this context, the Saydet el-Jabal gathering and the Council professed that “this maneuver confirms that Hezbollah wants to form a state of its own in Lebanon, starting with the Presidency of the Republic, that would protect its weapons and cover its movements both within and outside the country.”
The Saydet el-Jabal Gathering and the Council also claimed that “Lebanon is under Iranian occupation today more than ever. This means that the presidency battle is not over names of candidates, but rather to overthrow the political effectiveness of the Iranian occupation by preventing Hezbollah from imposing its strategic options on Lebanon, starting with the Lebanese presidency, and so by the force of its weapons, which the vast majority of Lebanese are against.”
