Members of Parliament meet today in a general session that has not seen such attendance in years, resonating around the issue of Syrian displacement and European aid. Allies and opponents alike share a common agreement on the necessity of urgently addressing this issue fundamentally, albeit with differing viewpoints, and conveying to the relevant parties in the international community that Lebanon, no matter the crises it faces, will not become a beggar on the sidewalks of any country, and no aid will be accepted at the expense of the sovereignty and decision-making of the Lebanese state and people.
Undoubtedly, today's parliamentary dome will serve as a stage for parliamentary jockeying over a file that is one of the most complex issues both internally and externally. To prevent the session from turning into a political poetry recital and a squabble among political forces, communications and meetings have intensified in the lead-up to the session. President Nabih Berri has tasked his assistant, MP Ali Hassan Khalil, with conducting a series of communications and consultations aimed at harmonizing positions to ensure a well-orchestrated atmosphere within the general hall that reaches the desired goal of parliamentary and political consensus, enabling Lebanon to confront the international community that is trying through various means, whether through inducements or threats, to keep the displaced in Lebanon and prevent any of them from leaking into European countries.
While there is a consensus on the need to dismantle the time bomb known as displacement, there is a problem regarding the methods of addressing it. This has prompted Presidents Nabih Berri and Najib Mikati to hold meetings and consultations, each in their respective roles, to contain what can be contained so that the session remains productive, especially as we are just hours away from the Brussels Conference, where displacement will be central to discussions. The caretaker Prime Minister has tasked Foreign Minister Abdullah Bou Habib with conveying Lebanon's unified stance on the displacement issue to this conference to prevent any loophole from being exploited that would not serve Lebanese interests.
As is well-known, the Prime Minister has prepared for today's confrontation and has been working on a comprehensive speech that addresses all the contentious points and the concerns expressed regarding the billion euro aid, with some even describing it as a bribe, which has upset President Mikati. This discomfort will reflect in the language of the speech he will deliver from the podium of the council.
If President Mikati expresses his pain over the accusations leveled against him immediately after the departure of the Cypriot President and the President of the European Commission from Lebanon, there are those who will propose a solution that is agreed upon, culminating in the council issuing a recommendation to the government, one of its core principles being the urgent handling of the displacement file, which has become a significant threat to the Lebanese reality. This recommendation will include several items that will call on the government to work toward achieving the desired solution.
However, the matter of communication between the Lebanese and Syrian governments for coordination in this field might spark a heated debate, as there are factions in Lebanon that do not favor communication with the Syrian regime, while other factions see no benefit in seeking any resolution to the displacement issue without this communication. As long as all Arabs, in their opinion, have returned to Syria, why should Lebanon remain outside the Arab fold, unless certain states are pressuring to keep communication lines cut for purposes that do not serve the interests of either Lebanon or Syria at all.
Parliamentary sources believe that addressing the Syrian displacement requires many political climates that are still not available, in addition to security and financial issues that are hard to come by under the siege imposed on Syria. Hence, this session is important in terms of the collective Lebanese interest in addressing this file; however, the council and the government will not be able to provide solutions as the displacement file is intertwined with complex regional and international conditions that are difficult to resolve without a comprehensive settlement of regional crises from A to Z. The sources commended the consultative meeting held in Parliament before the session, where extensive discussions took place concerning displacement and European aid, and a unified vision was set for the draft decision or recommendation that will be issued today from the session.
