Opposition forces will gather in Maarab on Saturday at the invitation of the Lebanese Forces party. While the presence of the "Kataeb" and several members of the change movement has been confirmed, others will be absent from the meeting. What is the reason for the invitation?
Member of the "Strong Republic" bloc, MP George Okais, considers that "the larger issue is security in Lebanon and the extremely dangerous situation the country’s security has reached from two perspectives: the 1701 perspective to avoid war, and another perspective relating to controlling the borders and combating loose weaponry while asserting the state's legitimacy across all Lebanese territories and deploying the army in the south and all regions where its presence is limited."
Okais states to MTV: "We need to raise our voices against the lawlessness that has recently prevailed in Lebanon, so that the government and security and military agencies assume their responsibilities and everyone realizes that 1701 is a gateway to stability in the south and a pathway for our return to the truce agreement, and consequently, security across all of Lebanon."
He continues: "There is a team that claims it is liberating Lebanese territories while in fact, it is doing nothing of the sort, instead opening a battlefield that the majority of the Lebanese people do not want and creating security islands from which organized criminal activities are emerging, posing a significant threat to security, compounded by the risk of Syrian displacement. This will be discussed at the Maarab meeting."
The core issue is the necessity of implementing 1701, which the international community and several local forces call for. What will this meeting change on the ground? Okais answers: "In political work, we must apply continuous pressure, even if our field capabilities are limited. We are a political party that does not want to take to the streets and protect our security by ourselves because we believe it is the responsibility and duty of the state. Our discourse cannot be dual; we cannot demand state-building and the rule of law on one hand, and on the other act contrary to that on the ground."
He adds: "When a party practices politics through peaceful and democratic means, the only way is to apply pressure and unify the opposition against the reality imposed by armed factions, ensuring we have a unified stance and a single discourse. The image that will emerge on Saturday will reflect the unity of the stance."
"What is happening has now become an existential threat to us, with various ramifications," according to Okais, concluding: "A clear and very strong position will be issued by those gathered on this issue."
