Jolani: If it is the will of the Lebanese, we will support Joseph Aoun for president

Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) leader Ahmad al-Sharaa, better known as Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, who led the coalition that toppled the Assad government in Syria a week ago, said he was ready to support Lebanese army commander Joseph Aoun as Lebanon's next president, if that was the will of the Lebanese people.

In a meeting with journalists, excerpts of which were published by the newspaper an-Nahar, Jolani said that any decision regarding the political situation in Lebanon "is up to the Lebanese people" and stressed that Syria would not interfere in Lebanon's internal affairs.

"We have no plans to get involved in Lebanon's affairs," he said, stressing that "if the Lebanese agree on Joseph Aoun as president, we will support him."

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HTS’ power put to the test in Syria

Lebanon has been without a president since October 2022. After months of inertia on this issue, against a backdrop of conflict between Hezbollah and the Israeli army, the entry into force of the cease-fire on Nov. 27 gave new impetus to the issue and prompted Parliamentary Speaker Nabih Berri to schedule a parliamentary election session on Jan. 9. The army commander is among the presidential candidates, along with other Maronite figures, including Marada leader Sleiman Frangieh, supported by Hezbollah and the Amal Movement, and MP Neemat Frem, who announced his official candidacy at the end of the week.

Jolani has 'no problem with Lebanon'

The head of the ruling coalition in Syria has again stressed that he has "no problem with Lebanon."

"On the contrary, we do not want to intervene or exert pressure on this country, as has been the case in the past," he said.

Syria occupied Lebanon from 1976, when it intervened in the civil war that had broken out a year earlier, until 2005. Even after that date and the withdrawal of the Syrian army from the country, following large-scale demonstrations against Syrian rule, Damascus exercised significant influence over Lebanese politics, not hesitating to eliminate its opponents.

Syrian opposition rebels toppled Assad last Sunday, after a rapid advance lasting a dozen days.

Since the fall of the government, Lebanese officials have expressed their willingness to establish good relations with the new authorities in Damascus, but no official contact has yet been made. The only Lebanese political figure to have made contact with Jolani is the former head of the Progressive Socialist Party (PSP), Walid Jumblatt.

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Cease-fire south of the Litani, election of a president and reinforcement of the army at the heart of Hezbollah leader's speech

On Saturday evening, Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said his party would not be able to immediately judge the "new forces" in power in Syria until they took "clear positions and the situation normalized."

"Our relationship with Syria will depend on that," he noted.