Lebanon’s Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) announced on Sunday that Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil would assume the party’s presidency for another term.
Bassil first took on this post four years ago, when Michel Aoun was elected as the country’s president.
The announcement of Bassil’s victory came two days after the end of the deadline for the submission of candidacies. Based on an agreement within the FPM, no other list competed with that of Aoun’s son-in-law, which made the latter the uncontested winner.
A statement by the FPM said the party’s internal elections committee held a meeting Sunday morning and named Bassil as party leader, May Khreich as deputy leader for political affairs and Martine Najem Kteily as deputy leader for administrative affairs.
The party later announced that Bassil and his two deputies would meet FPM supporters next Monday to announce their program for the next four years.
Separately, head of the Kataeb Party, MP Sami Gemayel, said that the Lebanese state was behaving as if it was not interested in protecting its people.
“Hezbollah has become the state and our republic is a state within the state, not the other way around,” he underlined.
Gemayel was referring to recent security developments between Hezbollah and Israel along the southern border.
“What we are witnessing today is insulting for the Lebanese people, the country’s constitution and its army. The state is watching those who decide and threaten us without our permission,” he noted.
