Exclusive, “Akhbar al-Yawm” agency
Paris abandoned the presidential-government swap and Hezbollah remained alone in the battle
"Protecting the backbone of the resistance" is a slogan that is raised at every entitlement, and Hezbollah is the only armed party.
So what is the resistance afraid of, at a time when no one -locally and abroad- wants to bring Lebanon into a civil war or go towards military options!
A knowledgeable source answers by saying: "Look for regional variants"!
He explains, via the "Akhbar al-Yawm" agency, that there are indications that the party has begun to read as a result of the Saudi – Iranian agreement, and it will be forced to make revisions, so it seeks an authority guaranteed by it absolutely, in other words, it wants a president replica of the former President Emile Lahoud.
The same source talks about the existence of another reason for Hezbollah's commitment to protecting the backbone of the resistance, is the desire of this team to take Lebanon to its project, namely the project of Wilayat al-Faqih in full, but this matter is no longer available today, especially after the parliamentary elections and after the complete economic collapse, such an option cannot be implemented, especially since everything is changing in the region.
The source asserts that the goals of the resistance are no longer easy to achieve, because new data do not allow this party to "choose a president in Lebanon," noting that Saudi Arabia's position is clear in rejecting a "President supported by the party", and the agreement between Riyadh and Tehran means restoring balance to the regional arena, and perhaps the balance referred to is through the options put forward by the chairman of the Progressive Socialist Party Walid Jumblatt, any candidate who does not belong to this team or that.
Considering that the information published from time to time about the progress of the fortunes of the head of the Marada Movement, MP Sleiman Frangieh, no longer makes sense, the source stresses that any possible settlement will be about a president who has the specifications, i.e. to carry a sovereign reform background, saying: it is true that he will not be a provocateur for the March 8 team, but he cannot be from this team.
The source points out that the contact that took place last Sunday between Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and French President Emmanuel Macron – who agreed to work together to help Lebanon - moved the presidential entitlement to a new stage entitled "the search for the third option", in other words, the external situation began to take shape after France abandoned the adoption of the barter (between the president of the March 8 team and the head of a sovereign government) and therefore the party that remained alone in this battle.
The source concludes by stressing that the issue has become a matter of time waiting for Hezbollah to back down from its position in support of Frangieh.