The streets of Bachoura They are covered with photos of him. It is the last neighborhood bombed by Israel during the downtown Beirutand hundreds of Muslims and Christians are shouting to end a problem they never expected would come to their doorsteps. Most agree that there is one man who has the solution. He is Shia, like those in Hezbollah, a party with which its supporters largely agree. But what he offers Nabih Berri This does not involve war, nor does it require battle fronts. Quite the contrary: he intends to renounce armed confrontation with Israel, seek support inside and outside Lebanon and impose a lasting ceasefire.
Berri is the president of the Lebanese Parliament. He has been at the helm for almost half a century Amalthe party from which hundreds of activists deserted in 1982 to found Hezbollah. The two parties overcame the enmity that marked their relations during the civil war (1975-1982), to such an extent that Amal acts as a hinge between the yellow party and the rest of the political parties in Lebanon. In a sectarian country like this, Berri is one of the few men who influence among political elites of all signs and religions. It is one of gentlemen of the establishment Lebanese, and that is why he knows he is the ideal person for what his people need most now: a conciliatory leader who will end the crisis that killed nearly 2,300 civilians last year.
Last week, Amal’s leader issued a statement alongside the Sunni interim prime minister. Nayib MikatiAlready Walid Yumblatleader of the Druze ethnic minority and also a veteran of the civil war. All three agreed that Lebanon needed a immediate ceasefire. Hezbollah itself later joined in this demand, decapitated after Israel killed its secretary general, Hassan Nasrallahon September 27. The party militia has lowered its tone since that tragic day, and the person closest to replacing Nasrallah, Naim Qasemalready rejects the hypothesis of a war against Israel until an armistice is concluded in Gaza.
For Berri, a ceasefire in Lebanon must be followed by the application of UN Security Council Resolution 1701. Approved after the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in the summer of 2006, Project 1701 tasks a peacekeeping mission with helping the Lebanese army keep the entire south of the country free of weapons, from the border with Israel to south to the Litani River in the north. Although the mission is deployed, its failure has been revealed in recent weeks: lto UNIFIL—or UNIFIL, for its acronym in English– not only has it failed to disarm Hezbollah in recent years, but now Israel intervenes with its tanks and attacks international bases with its missiles.
The petition carried by the president of the Lebanese Parliament has become more vehement in recent days. The reason is that after the assassination of Nasrallah, The United States has all but stopped asking Israel for a ceasefire in Lebanon. The government of Joe Biden, which at the start of the Israeli aggression had insisted on the cessation of hostilities, went so far as to welcome the September 27 operation which left hundreds of lifeless bodies under the rubble in Beirut as a “measure of justice” against Hezbollah.
Since the beginning of the month, Washington’s change in strategy towards Lebanon has only been confirmed. Matthew Millerspokesperson for the US State Department, acknowledged last week that Circumstances have changed. “We support that Israel launches these missiles to degrade Hezbollah’s infrastructure, so that ultimately we can reach a diplomatic resolution,” he told a news conference.
The Iranian attacks on different cities in Israel on the afternoon of October 1 could have been a compelling reason: Biden could have as a priority to contain Tel Aviv’s response to Tehran, even if he must in exchange give Benjamin Netanyahu wide sleeve to attack Lebanon. Maintaining Israeli attacks against Hezbollah could be a lesser evil for Washington at a time when Israel could launch reckless retaliation against Iran. Whether it’s a factor or not, the Israeli counterattack appears underway: On Sunday afternoon, the Pentagon announced it would deploy a anti-ballistic missile system and troops in Israel in the coming days.
At a time when the Lebanese can expect nothing from the United States, the efforts of Nabih Berri and the rest of the political class constitute the last hope of an entire country. In an interview published this weekend in The Orient-The Day, The President of the Lebanese Parliament boasted of repeating the same message to all his interlocutors: ceasefire and resolution 1701.
The same Saturday he appeared in the Lebanese newspaper, Berri met his Iranian counterpart, the American Secretary of State and Emmanuel Macron. If he congratulated the French president for being “in the same box as us” and “for having reiterated his attachment to resolution 1701”, the Lebanese’s comments about Anthony Blinken They were totally complaining. The President of Parliament criticized American diplomacy from Beirut: “They say one thing and do another.”. We appreciate your words, but “Their actions do not match what they say.” Berri also opposed Washington’s insistence on seeking to impose a solution to the political impasse in Lebanon, which this month marks two years without an elected government due to a blockade by Hezbollah MPs. “No one treats Lebanon this way, and everyone knows that it is impossible to impose a president on the Lebanese,” recalled the Amal leader.
About the visit of Mohamed Bagher Ghalibafthe President of the Lebanese Parliament, the words were once again grateful: “Iran stands in solidarity with Lebanon and also wants a ceasefire” he assured.
While Israel continues to harass the south of the country with the acquiescence of the United States, which seems to prefer an escalation in Lebanon to a direct war with Iran, Nabih Berri appears as a consensus figure.
But it may be too late. The situation continues to get worse. This weekend, Israel killed more than 70 people across Lebanon: Attacks continued to focus on border regions, but missiles also fell on Kesérouana region north of Beirut. In Nabatiyéthe largest city in the south of the country, bombings destroyed the main historic souk.
On the other front of this war, where Deaths already exceed 42,000Gazans continue to suffer even though their stories no longer make headlines. Over the past nine days, Israel has killed 300 people in a new headquarters in Yabalianorth of the Strip.
For its part, on Sunday afternoon, Hezbollah missiles left at least 69 injured in central Israel. It must be added to this that Tel Aviv’s response to Iran following the attacks of early October has not yet come.
It is this unstoppable war that Berri and the Lebanese Parliament seek to reverse. The question is in Who will be ready to listen to them at this point?after so many failed ceasefire attempts in Gaza and after the bloodiest year of this century.
