The meeting Friday morning between Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) leader Gebran Bassil was a notable political development, given the long-standing tensions between the two. Their relationship had soured ever since Aoun emerged as a favored presidential candidate — a move Bassil strongly opposed. Friday’s sit-down marked their first direct contact since the FPM-led Strong Lebanon Parliamentary bloc visited Baabda Presidential Palace to congratulate the new president following his election.Sources say the meeting was carefully coordinated. Bassil had requested it some time ago, and Baabda responded positively but waited for the right timing. That moment seems to have arrived amid a period of national upheaval, mounting internal and external pressure and a growing sense among political forces that they are...
The meeting Friday morning between Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) leader Gebran Bassil was a notable political development, given the long-standing tensions between the two. Their relationship had soured ever since Aoun emerged as a favored presidential candidate — a move Bassil strongly opposed. Friday’s sit-down marked their first direct contact since the FPM-led Strong Lebanon Parliamentary bloc visited Baabda Presidential Palace to congratulate the new president following his election.Sources say the meeting was carefully coordinated. Bassil had requested it some time ago, and Baabda responded positively but waited for the right timing. That moment seems to have arrived amid a period of national upheaval, mounting internal and external pressure and a growing sense among political forces that they...