Political sources suggested to "Al-Liwaa" that this week will open with discussions among parliamentary blocs to finalize their options ahead of the consultations for the new Prime Minister. The sources indicated that positions are being announced sequentially, and some blocs may decide their positions just hours before Thursday. They noted that no new names have emerged as candidates for the premiership and questioned whether there is any hidden agenda or if the scene will remain unchanged regarding the appointment of President Najib Mikati with a voting count not exceeding 65 votes, or even less.
While waiting for the consultations to be completed in the coming hours, the previous discussions concluded with the intersection of the Free Patriotic Movement with opposition groups, individually or collectively, to exclude President Mikati from nomination. This topic was present in the meeting between President Berri and Bou Saab, but no changes occurred in the positions.
According to informed sources from "Al-Joumhouria," there are three aspects still unclear regarding the consultation process:
- **The First Aspect**: The position of the "Free Patriotic Movement," which was clear and decisive in electing the Deputy Speaker of Parliament, collaborating with its allies in March 8, while its position regarding the appointment remains ambiguous. It is still unclear whether they will maintain the same alliance with "Hezbollah" to support the same candidate. If the "Strong Lebanon" bloc differentiates itself from its natural allies in this process, it would mean their loss of the appointment card would be certain, especially if the opposing team succeeds in uniting, much like they did in the battle for the Deputy Speaker position. The position of the "Free Patriotic Movement" reflects that of President Michel Aoun, who is directly concerned with the latest appointment in his presidential term; it remains unknown what his calculations are and how he will handle this process, including his priorities, whether he desires an appointment followed by a formation, or whether he intends to distinguish himself in this process from "Hezbollah" for presidential reasons.
- **The Second Aspect**: This concerns the opposing faction's ability to first unite its ranks and secondly, to agree on a single figure to be nominated during the consultations. Who is this figure? Are the discreet communications among the components of this faction nearing an agreement on a shared candidate? Has this faction learned from its previous lack of organization in the last appointment process, and are they working to correct that flaw for Thursday's session? There is no doubt that the fate of the opposition this time is at stake because a new loss would mean that relying on their success is misplaced due to their inability to consolidate a common project, which would allow the pro-government faction to benefit from this gap to win one appointment after another.
- **The Third Aspect**: This is related to "Hezbollah" and whether it will engage in this process with the same intensity and seriousness as it did during the internal elections in Parliament, or if it will approach it smoothly and without effort to unify ranks, thereby not needing to make concessions to its ally, the "Free Patriotic Movement," particularly as they recognize that formation is not possible as it requires the signature of the President. However, it is known that "Hezbollah" does not neglect such critical appointments, and thus it is expected to gather its ranks and its allies and prepare the necessary votes to retain the appointment card and prevent the opposing faction from scoring a significant goal in this process.
It does not appear that the President is inclined to delay the consultations, and it remains uncertain whether he will send a message to the Lebanese on the eve of these consultations, trying to guide them in a certain direction as he has done in previous times. However, it is confirmed that these consultations will witness a unique confrontation between two undisclosed names, and the outcome will remain pending until announced by the President. All indicators suggest that the appointment will again favor caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati.
