The Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) sought to downplay on Thursday the gravity of the incident in Kahaleh, the result of which a resident of the area, Fadi Bejjani, was killed on Wednesday during armed clashes with members of Hezbollah.
The FPM’s press office said in a statement that what happened in Kahaleh was due to “negligence on the part of Hezbollah and security forces.”
The toning down of the statement suggests that the FPM considers the incident to be just another news item. The party even warned against “exploiting this incident to exacerbate tensions and sow discord” and called for “constructive dialogue” to resolve the issue.
The FPM offered its condolences to the family of Fadi Bejjani and the people of Kahaleh, stating that “security forces and the judiciary must contain the situation, carry out an investigation, and reveal the truth.”
It should be noted that Fadi Bejjani was close to the FPM and that his daughter is a journalist who works with OTV, the party’s official news channel.
FPM leader Gebran Bassil is currently engaged in dialogue with the Iranian-backed Shiite party over the presidential election, and the mild statement suggests that he did not want to compromise the negotiations.
