Hezbollah is reportedly concerned by the wave of resignations of Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) MPs from the party led by Gebran Bassil, the latest of whom was MP Simon Abi Ramia.
Political circles close to the pro-Iranian party reveal that Hezbollah’s Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah blamed Bassil for the “breakups” within the FPM, stressing that “now is not the time, on the eve of the presidential election, for the movement to lose a number of its MPs, weakening its position.”
The circles explain that Bassil “has moved closer to Hezbollah again” in an effort to restore the alliance between them. Bassil has reportedly requested a meeting with Nasrallah to discuss the foundations for a new alliance, but the latter was not pleased with Bassil’s conciliation moves after losing a number of his bloc’s MPs.
Information indicates that Bassil’s proposal for a new alliance is based on him abandoning the nomination of Jihad Azour as a presidential candidate, in exchange for dropping Sleiman Frangieh, the candidate of the “Shiite duo,” Amal and Hezbollah. Bassil put up a list of four potential candidates to choose from, including two former ministers and two military figures, who would be “reassuring and acceptable by the duo.”
Only then would Bassil side back with Hezbollah and Amal permanently, in a move aimed at weakening the opposition, especially the Lebanese Forces, and disrupting their efforts to secure the signatures of 65 parliamentarians in order to petition Speaker Nabih Berri to convene a parliament session to elect a president.
