Lebanon’s Shi’ite population should carry out an “intifada” against Hezbollah, Kataeb leader Sami Gemayel told a delegation from Lebanese Press Editors’ Syndicate, according to Lebanese media reports.
Gemayel told the delegation that there was no solution to the conflict that Lebanon could alone solve. His comments were made only days before it was reported that mutually agreed-upon third nations would monitor and verify the disarmament of Hezbollah.
Though a supporter of the US-backed peace framework for Beirut and Jerusalem, he acknowledged that the situation was also dependent on wider regional developments, namely Iran.
Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran and holds loyalty to the ayatollah as a central pillar of its ideology under Wilayat al-Faqih (Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist), will continue to act on Tehran’s instructions, he said, making Lebanon’s situation dependent on wider regional developments.
Gemayel made clear that he viewed the Shi’ite community as victims of Hezbollah and said he had approached Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri to discuss how to engage with the community about creating a separation between it and Hezbollah, a discussion that Berri was quick to shut down.
Shi’ite population 'held hostage' by Hezbollah
Berri, though the leader of the Amal Movement, is closely allied with Hezbollah, and a number of researchers, including Lebanese researcher Hanin Ghaddar, have written extensively about how Hezbollah has bolstered his political position.
L’Orient Today reported that Gemayel suggested the Shi’ite population was being held hostage to Hezbollah and there should, therefore, be an “intifada” (uprising) against the group.