Members of the Amal Movement gathered on Saturday. Photo provided by Mountasser Abdallah.
The Amal Movement announced Saturday that it has begun preparations for the municipal elections, scheduled for May, and reaffirmed its alliance with Hezbollah in the vote. The announcement came during a meeting attended by Moustapha Fouani, director of the movement’s executive committee.
In his remarks, Fouani emphasized "the strong relationship between Amal and Hezbollah and their desire to run in the municipal elections on unified lists, in accordance with the agreement signed by Amal leader Nabih Berri and Hassan Nasrallah," Hezbollah’s former secretary-general, who was killed in an Israeli strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs on Sept. 27, 2024. He also stressed the importance of "choosing competent candidates with varied specializations."
Relations between Amal and Hezbollah have been tense in recent months, as Berri negotiated Lebanon’s cease-fire agreement with Israel, a move criticized by Hezbollah.
The municipal elections must take place before May 31, 2025, when the term of municipal councils—extended three times in recent years—expires. Interior Minister Ahmad Hajjar told L’Orient-Le Jour that he intends to hold the vote "within the scheduled deadlines, that is, next May." Meanwhile, Georges Adwan, head of Parliament’s Administration and Justice Committee, said election funding is included in the 2025 state budget and that solutions are being considered for voting in South Lebanon, which was heavily damaged by Israeli strikes. Options include postponing the vote in the region or setting up "mega voting centers" that would allow residents to cast ballots from their place of residence rather than their original district.
Fouani also called for giving "great importance" to reconstruction efforts to enable residents — particularly those in border villages — to return to their homes. He also discussed the situation in South Lebanon, government formation, the implementation of U.N. Resolution 1701, and Israel’s withdrawal.
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