Recent efforts by the leader of the Progressive Socialist Party (PSP), Walid Jumblatt, to contain the repercussions of the clashes that erupted in Beirut on Saturday, would remain insufficient if they were not complemented with a similar move by Hezbollah and a political initiative by Prime Minister Hassan Diab, sources from the opposition told Asharq Al-Awsat.
Jumblatt visited on Sunday Speaker Nabih Berri and former Prime Minister Saad Hariri, following a night of severe clashes in the Lebanese capital.
According to the sources, the three leaders expressed their commitment to “prevent the country from being drawn into sectarian strife,” adding that they would exert all efforts “to dispel the atmosphere of tension and block attempts to revive the lines of confrontations that existed during the civil war.”
The sources, however, were surprised that Diab “did not move towards the political and sectarian leaders, who took charge of calming the tension and preventing the clashes from turning into sectarian strife.”
“Presiding over a security meeting was not enough; he was supposed to form the axis of communications, rather than issuing a mere statement on Twitter, rejecting discord and insults to religious symbols,” the opposition sources underlined.
They continued: “What is said about Diab in this regard applies to President Michel Aoun, who only issued a condemnation that did not have a political impact.”
But the attention is now turning to Hezbollah, which was quick to denounce the events and “now has the duty to seek to reconnect with its allies because they stood against all forms of violence practiced by this or that party.”
According to the sources, condemning the incidents is not enough, and the party must join the efforts to prevent the recurrence of what happened.
Demonstrations in protest against the deteriorating economic situation and the escalation of social crises clashes with a counter-movement by the so-called “resistance brigades”, the supporters of Hezbollah.
While Hezbollah washed its hands of the counter-movement, the politician who spoke to Asharq Al-Awsat believes that “condemnation is not enough, and the party has to engage in efforts to prevent the recurrence of what happened, especially since the majority in the Sunni street does not absolve it of its responsibility.”
