Hezbollah delegation visits Rai, stresses need to hasten presidential election

A delegation from Hezbollah, headed by its Political Council Head Ibrahim Amin Al-Sayyed, visited Maronite Patriarch Bechara Rai on Monday. They conveyed their best wishes for the holidays and discussed the essential issues in Lebanon, including the presidential election.

 

This step came after several meetings and dialogues that lasted for months.

The Hezbollah official also pointed out that "Rai expressed his keenness to hold the presidential election and deal with it with great responsibility because the country is going through tough conditions."

He then clarified that "the page is always open between them," saying there is "no old page or a new one between the party and Rai."

"There is no disagreement with the Patriarch," he insisted, "but rather an exchange of views based on the keenness to elect a president to carry out his duty towards Lebanon."

Al-Sayyed  stated, "what is needed is to hasten the presidential election and to establish a true dialogue in the country, particularly in the parliament, as Speaker Nabih Berri called for, to come to an understanding on a president who can help the country."

He continued, "MP Gebran Bassil has the right to his views, and we are pleased with the understanding that has been reached with the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM)," stressing that Bassil was never under the "umbrella" of Hezbollah.

On another note, Al-Sayyed noted that they do not veto anyone when choosing the army commander to be the president, and call for consensus.