LF MP Calls Berri ‘Schizophrenic’; Amal, Hezbollah Cancel Opposition Meeting

Opposition lawmakers were scheduled to meet with Amal and Hezbollah MPs on Friday and Monday to continue an initiative they started last week aimed at facilitating the election of a president. However, the meetings were canceled.

Opposition sources and Lebanese Forces MP Georges Okais confirmed that Amal and Hezbollah canceled the meetings. Okais criticized Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, who had called for ten days of dialogue to pave the way for a presidential election, accusing him of being contradictory and referring to his actions as “schizophrenia.”

Earlier this month, opposition lawmakers launched an initiative to break the political deadlock, proposing two suggestions to facilitate the presidential election. They met with lawmakers from various blocs, including the Democratic Gathering bloc, the National Moderation bloc, the Free Patriotic Movement’s Strong Lebanon bloc, and other independent MPs.

The canceled meeting has not been rescheduled, according to opposition sources reported by the local newspaper al-Joumhouria.

Lebanon has been without a president since Michel Aoun’s term ended in October 2022. Both Amal-Hezbollah and the opposition blame each other for obstructing the presidential election and refusing dialogue.

The Lebanese Forces oppose a dialogue chaired by Berri. Their initiative suggested consultations in parliament without Berri’s chairmanship. They also proposed an open presidential election session chaired by Berri, where MPs and blocs would consult outside the parliamentary hall after the first round of voting and then return for successive rounds of voting.

LF leader Samir Geagea insists that Berri’s duty is to call for an election session, not to chair any preceding dialogue.