Geagea dubs Bassil's initiative 'empty posturing', says nothing can be done anymore
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea has criticized an initiative launched by Free Patriotic leader Jebran Bassil to unify the Lebanese stance against the risk of war, dubbing it "an empty posturing".
In an interview published Wednesday in L'Orient Le-Jour, Geagea admitted that the opposition cannot do anything anymore to protect Lebanon from the risk of joining the Israel-Hamas war, as he said that it is Hezbollah, and not the Lebanese state, that is taking the war and peace decision.
Bassil's initiative is "a step that shows he thinks people are stupid," Geagea charged. "He has no credibility and no clear initiative."
Bassil met Wednesday with MP Faisal Karami and MPs from the national moderation bloc, as part of a tour over the military developments in south Lebanon and Gaza.
On Monday and Tuesday, he met with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and former Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat. He also spoke by phone to Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah.
The tour, according to Bassil, aims at "protecting Lebanon" and "reinforcing national unity."
During his tour, Bassil said that "all Lebanese agree that they do not want war," stressing that Lebanon would defend itself against any Israeli aggression.
25 October 2023, 17:56
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Yes of course it was grandstanding and posturing on the part of Bassil, but it's something Geagea, Sami and the rest of the opposition should have done. Talk to the other components of the country. Even the ones allied with hassin like Berri, Mikati and even Bassil, but still came out against dragging Lebanon into the Israeli/Palestinian war. The whole country is in peril. At the end of the day hassin will do what the Iranians tell him to do, but at least Geagea would have shown leadership. Unfortunately commenting on what Bassil did is is nothing but sour grapes, I say this with a heavy heart.
