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LEBANESE PRESIDENCY

Berri may no longer call for dialogue

The speaker of Parliament insisted, once again, that "a president cannot be elected without compromise."

Berri may no longer call for dialogue

The Speaker of the Lebanese Parliament, Nabih Berri, during a parliamentary session devoted to the election of a successor to former President Michel Aoun on Dec. 15, 2022. (Credit: Lebanese Parliament/Hassan Ibrahim)

BEIRUT — Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said he may no longer call on MPs for a dialogue to elect a new head of state, after his second initiative in mid-December fell through in the face of reluctance from the main Christian parties, while the country has been without a president or an active cabinet since the end of former President Michel Aoun's term on Oct. 31.

"The presidential vacuum can last a few weeks, but not months," Berri said in an interview published Saturday by the local newspaper Al Joumhouria, stating that "the situation in the country is catastrophic.”

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While several parties, including the Lebanese Forces and the Free Patriotic Movement, opposed or were reluctant to his call for dialogue, Berri hinted that he would not launch a similar initiative again. "I tried and they did not respond, so what is the point in calling for dialogue?" he asked, insisting, once again, that "a president cannot be elected without compromise.’’

During the 10 electoral meetings since the end of September, Lebanese MPs failed to elect a new president due to the lack of consensus on a candidate, as is customary in Lebanon. So far, Michel Moawad, MP for Zgharta and the candidate of a broad section of the opposition, including the LF, the Kataeb, the Progressive Socialist Party and independent MPs, has received the most votes.

The head of the FPM, Gebran Bassil, announced that he will launch an initiative early this year to elect a consensus figure whose name has not yet been put on the table. According to information obtained by L’Orient-Le Jour, this name would be that of Jihad Azour, director of the Middle East and Central Asia at the International Monetary Fund (IMF).


BEIRUT — Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said he may no longer call on MPs for a dialogue to elect a new head of state, after his second initiative in mid-December fell through in the face of reluctance from the main Christian parties, while the country has been without a president or an active cabinet since the end of former President Michel Aoun's term on Oct. 31."The presidential...