Hezbollah leader hints at change in approach to Lebanon’s internal affairs

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Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem hinted at a change in approach to Lebanese internal affairs from the group in a speech on Wednesday, suggesting a willingness to help elect a new president and to support efforts to reconstruction efforts in the country.

“Our internal efforts will be carried out within the framework of the Taif Agreement,” Mr Qassem said in reference to the accord that brought an end to the 1975-1990 Lebanese civil war, which redistributed and equalised power between the country’s various confessions. He said that the armed group would contribute to reconstruction efforts, support the election of a new president after years of political stalemate, and take a more active role in political life.

Lebanon has been without a president for more than two years, with Hezbollah refusing to back down on its support for Marada leader Suleiman Frangieh. Twelve failed presidential election sessions have been held since Michel Aoun left the presidential palace in Baabda in October 2022 – but none since Israel and Hezbollah’s war broke out a year later.

Mr Qassem assumed leadership of Hezbollah after Israel killed its longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah in a massive bombing in Beirut in September. His speech had initially been scheduled for Tuesday, but was delayed until Wednesday as US special envoy Amos Hochstein held talks to Beirut to negotiate a ceasefire in the war between Hezbollah and Israel.

Although both Mr Hochstein and parliamentary speaker Nabih Berri, who is representing Hezbollah, have voiced optimism over the latest attempt to push through a US-proposed truce deal, Israel's insistence on retaining the right to act against perceived Hezbollah threats has proved a sticking point. Israel also wants to be formally given the right to continue to violate Lebanese airspace for intelligence purposes – as it has done tens of thousands of times in recent years in violation of a UN resolution that ended its last war with Hezbollah in 2000. Lebanon rejects this as an infringement of its sovereignty.

“The Israeli side expects to take from the agreement what it did not win in war, and this is not possible,” Mr Qassem said in the televised speech. Mr Hochstein arrived in Beirut on Tuesday, seeking to clinch a ceasefire agreement after the Lebanese government and Hezbollah agreed to a US ceasefire proposal, although with some comments.

“The meeting today built on the meeting yesterday, and made additional progress,” he said on Wednesday after his second meeting with Mr Berri. “So I will travel from here in a couple hours to Israel to try to bring this to a close if we can."