The President of the Lebanese Forces Party, Samir Jaja, confirmed during a press conference the "importance of the army's role, especially after October 7," noting that "we are surprised why some want to change the army commander now, as no state changes its army commander in such times." He pointed out that "the caretaker government and the army's role are very pivotal and sensitive, so let's imagine that security is compromised amid an economic crisis, similar to what happened in Latin American countries during coups."
Jaja considered that "the importance of the army leadership file lies in the fact that the Lebanese army is not an institution like others; despite everything that happened during the October 17 protests, it did everything necessary to maintain security." He viewed that "the axis of resistance relies on suppressing the people, as evidenced by what happened in Syria and Iran during the revolution, and we all know what happened previously during the Syrian tutelage in Lebanon, and this axis has not removed its eye from the army leadership since the independence uprising in 2005."
He added: "The caretaker government is affiliated with the axis of resistance and will manipulate the army's leadership as it pleases, aiming to turn the leadership into a secret police; therefore, we are concerned about the army's leadership." He emphasized that "we are insistent on extending General Joseph Aoun's term because we know that despite the state's collapse, he has managed to secure the minimum necessary to run the affairs of the Lebanese army."
Jaja highlighted that "there is a conspiracy against renewing the army commander led by the head of the Free Patriotic Movement, MP Gebran Bassil, 'the disaster of the republic.'" He stated: "We will continue to work towards the extension of the army commander in the Parliament." He continued: "The only one who can stop this conspiracy is Mikati, and despite everything Lebanon is going through, lies remain the order of the day, and we will not abandon this file; our meetings with other parliamentary blocs are ongoing." He noted that "the party's refusal to extend General Aoun's term is old because he is independent and does not accept interference, which is the same reason preventing Bassil from extending his term."
