Lebanon’s former Foreign Affairs Minister Gebran Bassil and leader of the Free Patriotic Movement tells Al Jazeera that he has “no problem in principle in negotiating with Israel”.
The politician, who was previously allied with Hezbollah, said he supported negotiations with Israel because these were an alternative to war. Bassil also said he supported the Lebanese government’s independent decisions free from outside influence.
“We do not want anyone to negotiate on behalf of Lebanon; Lebanon must negotiate for itself,” Bassil told Al Jazeera.
Bassil said his support for Beirut’s negotiations with Israel hinged on restoring rights for the Lebanese people and on achieving peace in the region, reiterating that his support was conditional on any final deal between Israel and Lebanon not becoming a “surrender document”.
“The protection that Hezbollah provided has been eliminated as a result of this framework agreement without any alternative being offered”.
Bassil told Al Jazeera that his group still had “significant objections to the implementation clauses of the framework agreement”.
“The framework agreement with Israel is flawed in both form and substance. It imposes numerous obligations on Lebanon but none on Israel. There are also no guarantees of Israeli withdrawal, and the framework also overlooks the refugee issue”, said Bassil.
Bassil said he believes Israel wants to create a conflict between the Lebanese army and Hezbollah.
“Assigning the army the task of disarming Hezbollah will create a problem for Lebanon”.
The politician, who was previously allied with Hezbollah, said he supported negotiations with Israel because these were an alternative to war. Bassil also said he supported the Lebanese government’s independent decisions free from outside influence.
“We do not want anyone to negotiate on behalf of Lebanon; Lebanon must negotiate for itself,” Bassil told Al Jazeera.
Bassil said his support for Beirut’s negotiations with Israel hinged on restoring rights for the Lebanese people and on achieving peace in the region, reiterating that his support was conditional on any final deal between Israel and Lebanon not becoming a “surrender document”.
“The protection that Hezbollah provided has been eliminated as a result of this framework agreement without any alternative being offered”.
Bassil told Al Jazeera that his group still had “significant objections to the implementation clauses of the framework agreement”.
“The framework agreement with Israel is flawed in both form and substance. It imposes numerous obligations on Lebanon but none on Israel. There are also no guarantees of Israeli withdrawal, and the framework also overlooks the refugee issue”, said Bassil.
Bassil said he believes Israel wants to create a conflict between the Lebanese army and Hezbollah.
“Assigning the army the task of disarming Hezbollah will create a problem for Lebanon”.
