Joumblatt urges consensus on presidential election, says Lebanon must not tie its fate to Gaza

Former Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Joumblatt announced Monday that "the issue of naming a consensus president is not new, and I emphasize the importance of the role of the Quintet Committee. There must also be more effective participation from some countries in the Committee."

After a meeting of the General Assembly of the Druze sect's religious council, Joumblatt said, "We met a week ago with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, in the presence of Prime Minister Najib Mikati, and agreed on condemning the aggression, the importance of Lebanese unity, Lebanon's commitment to Resolution 1701, and that we will not tie our fate to the fate of Gaza. The meeting was clear."

He added, "We have no authority to exclude other parties from the tripartite meeting in Ain el-Tineh, and we have tasked MPs with continuing meetings with all parliamentary blocs."

MP Firas Hamdan, in turn, stated, "There is no room for false bets, no luxury in obstruction and disputes. We must head to Parliament to immediately elect a president who will guarantee all Lebanese."