The leader of the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM), Gebran Bassil, said on Monday that his party is not against the withdrawal of Hezbollah's weapons while insisting on the fact that the disputed Shebaa Farms "are Lebanese." In a press conference following a meeting of his party, the Christian leader defended himself against any failure in the case of the Lebanese detained or disappeared in Syrian prisons, while calling for the immediate return of displaced Syrians to Lebanon.
The FPM "is committed to finding a solution to [Hezbollah's] weapons and the weapons should only be held by the state, but this must be done within the framework of an agreement," Bassil said.
"The Shebaa Farms are Lebanese. We call on the new Syrian regime to recognize the Lebanese nature of these farms," he added while calling for "preserving Lebanon's sovereignty."
On Sunday, the former leader of the Progressive Socialist Party (PSP), Walid Joumblatt, claimed that the Shebaa Farms, a disputed territory between Lebanon, Syria and Israel, "are Syrian," rekindling the debate over the ownership of this hamlet of some 14 kilometers long and two kilometers wide. Hezbollah, which claims that the farms are indeed Lebanese, had been one of the key issues that it has repeatedly brought up.
Lebanese detainees in Syria and displaced persons
Bassil also addressed the issue of Lebanese detainees in the Assad government's prisons, a case that has been causing a stir since the fall of the Syrian dictator. The FPM is accused of not having carried out the necessary follow-up when Michel Aoun, the party's founder, was president.
"We were made to bear the responsibility for Lebanese prisoners in Syria, while we did everything to know the truth and find them ... We still need to find missing Lebanese [imprisoned in Syria] during the Lebanese civil war (1975-1990), but these are lies and stories fabricated to accuse us," he added.
The FPM leader then turned to the issue of displaced Syrians in Lebanon, calling for their return to their country.
"We are studying a law that will call for the immediate return of displaced Syrians and will prohibit the entry of new displaced people into Lebanon," he said. "The reasons that pushed them to stay in Lebanon should have disappeared after the fall of the regime," Bassil added.
Presidential election and defamation
Speaking about the presidential election, as a parliamentary election session is scheduled for Jan. 9, Bassil stated that his party "is not interested in a specific name" in terms of candidacy.
"We will not consider ourselves losers if the elected president is not the one we support, and vice versa. The victory and the loss lie in the success of the mandate of the future president," he said.
He also attacked "people and media" who would harm or defame the FPM, threatening to take legal action. Bassil also said he was open to receiving apologies "from any politician or journalist who has defamed us."