Hizbullah 'Categorically' Rejects Bassil's Remarks against Berri
Hizbullah on Monday said it “categorically rejects” Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil's leaked remarks about Speaker Nabih Berri.
“We categorically reject the insulting remarks against His Excellency, the Parliament Speaker and brother Mr. Nabih Berri... We reject any insult against him wherever it may come from,” Hizbullah, which is allied with both Berri and Bassil, said in a statement.
“We stress our high appreciation and great respect for the person and post of His Excellency Speaker Nabih Berri, and this is what Hizbullah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has always expressed in his speeches and stances,” the party added.
It warned that “this rhetoric cannot build a state or lead to reform, but will rather create further crises, sow discord and push the country into threats it can do without.”
“Now that things have reached this extent, we call for a quick solution to the current situation and for the highest levels of wisdom and responsibility,” Hizbullah urged.
Hizbullah's statement comes amid high tensions that followed the emergence of a video showing Bassil calling Berri a "thug" during a closed meeting in Batroun.
The leaked video which emerged Sunday comes amid an escalating dispute between Berri and President Michel Aoun over a decree granting one-year's seniority to a number of army officers.
Bassil is Aoun's son-in-law and heads his Free Patriotic Movement party. The footage drew the ire of Berri's aides and political allies, who lashed out at Bassil. Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil described Bassil in a tweet as "lowly" and a "political dwarf."
Supporters of Berri meanwhile blocked roads and staged sit-ins across the country in condemnation of Bassil's remarks.
Source: Naharnet
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