The head of the Kataeb Party, MP Sami Gemayel, confirmed in an interview with the Kuwaiti "Al-Rai" that Hezbollah uses the displaced individuals to blackmail the Lebanese people and threaten the international community in service of Syria. When asked about his commitment to his home in Bikfaya and limiting his movements, he said: "There is some truth in everything. There are threats and there are security advice, in addition to an analysis of the danger of the current phase." Regarding the nature of the threats and their source, Gemayel did not want to disclose anything, stating, "I will not go into details." When asked if there was concern about the use of security actions to create a breach in the political status quo, he said, "In my opinion, this risk exists."
He continued, "Regardless of what international envoys say or do in their efforts to find solutions to the crisis, the truth is that as long as Hezbollah clings to its candidate, all these initiatives and statements will go nowhere. Here lies the pivotal point; it doesn't matter what my opinion is, nor what the French think or the Qataris envision. As long as the party insists on obstructing the presidential elections and trying to impose its candidate, it means we are still at square one."
On the role that the Qatari envoy tried to play in terms of securing an agreement from all sides on the principle of the "third option," Gemayel said, "This is something that all parties in Lebanon have recognized except Hezbollah. We, in the opposition, embraced the third option unilaterally without waiting for any guarantees or measures from the other side, when we supported the candidacy of Jihad Azour. Let's remind everyone that our candidate, who represents our aspirations, is Michel Moawad. We decided to withdraw his candidacy in coordination with him to signal to the international community and the internal parties that we are willing to make concessions for the country and adopt a third option. Hence, we proposed Minister Azour. Consequently, the 59 MPs who voted for Azour, representing their parties, blocs, and independents, recognized the third option since his candidacy four months ago. However, the problem lies in the fact that whenever we pursue a third option, the resistance considers it a second one and asks us to propose a fourth candidate. When we reach the fourth, they will treat it as if it is our candidate and urge us to name a fifth candidate, while they remain adamant on their first candidate."
He added, "In my opinion, the resistance team is deceiving international envoys, claiming that they are open to hearing while they consider the envoys to have received positive signals. However, they reach the point where, when it comes to serious discussions and names, the party insists on its candidate again. Why did the French proposal hit a dead end? Minister Le Drian proposed the third option, and who halted this process? Hezbollah. Now, the Qatari envoy will adopt the same approach, and no different results are expected unless there is a change in the party's stance to withdraw its candidate. Once the party agrees to move to a third option, there will be no need for international envoys, and we can resolve matters among ourselves. The problem is that to this day, Hezbollah hijacks the presidential election and the state and institutions, wanting to impose its candidate on everyone; either the state conforms to its preferences, or it ceases to exist."
Regarding the Syrian displacement, he stated: "It is remarkable that Mr. Nasrallah, a dear friend of Bashar Al-Assad, is responsible for the borders and controlling them and for the non-return of the displaced to Syria; he does not want them to return. By urging us to speak with the West to lift sanctions against the Syrian regime, Mr. Hassan is implementing Bashar’s agenda, using the displacement card to eliminate the Caesar Law and lure a reconstruction process for Syria, in hopes of considering the return of his people to their homeland. The responsibility of this regime is to receive its citizens and return them to their home country, and this should not be conditional; it is not our responsibility to become the defense attorney for Assad."
He added, "Nasrallah’s proposal is rejected and is backwards. The Syrian regime has the duty to receive its citizens in their country. I consider the Secretary-General of Hezbollah's statements to be the voice of Bashar Al-Assad, using his country and blackmailing his people who suffer from the burden of displacement for the sake of the Syrian regime, based on leaving them in Lebanon to pressure the international community to lift the sanctions."
When asked if he fears further pressure on the file at multiple levels, including security, to entrench the equation mentioned by Hezbollah, he replied: "It is clear that this is a plan they are pursuing to relieve the isolation of Assad, and the price is paid by Lebanon and its people. The fear is growing because the country is hijacked, and the government is in the hands of Hezbollah, which defends it daily, and the parliament is paralyzed, being prevented from electing a president."
Gemayel paused at the words of a Hezbollah leader, Sheikh Nabil Qawuq, who considered that "the group of challenge and confrontation, by failing initiatives and agreements, has become a heavy burden on the country." He stated, "I consider this statement a death threat because burdens are eliminated, isn’t that so?"
