The leader of the Free Patriotic Movement, Gebran Bassil, in Jezzine, on May 24, 2025. Photo taken from the party's X account.
In the end, Gebran Bassil couldn’t “plant the flag” of the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) in Jezzine in 2025. A few weeks after celebrating what he had hailed as a “victory” in the municipal elections of the district’s capital — a city long seen as an FPM stronghold — Bassil faced a significant setback. David Helou, Jezzine’s newly elected mayor, who is endorsed by Bassil and his allies, lost the race for the presidency of the Jezzine Municipal Union to Bassam Romanos, the Lebanese Forces (LF) -backed mayor of Lebaa, who visited LF leader Samir Geagea in Meerab on Wednesday. The latter has thus effectively “avenged” his party’s earlier defeat and now holds a key political card that the LF is likely to play in the lead-up to the 2026 parliamentary elections, amid a fierce contest for political leadership among Christians.Romanos was...
In the end, Gebran Bassil couldn’t “plant the flag” of the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) in Jezzine in 2025. A few weeks after celebrating what he had hailed as a “victory” in the municipal elections of the district’s capital — a city long seen as an FPM stronghold — Bassil faced a significant setback. David Helou, Jezzine’s newly elected mayor, who is endorsed by Bassil and his allies, lost the race for the presidency of the Jezzine Municipal Union to Bassam Romanos, the Lebanese Forces (LF) -backed mayor of Lebaa, who visited LF leader Samir Geagea in Meerab on Wednesday. The latter has thus effectively “avenged” his party’s earlier defeat and now holds a key political card that the LF is likely to play in the lead-up to the 2026 parliamentary elections, amid a fierce contest for political leadership among...