Hezbollah Accused of Seeking to Eliminate Electoral Opponents

Head of the Democratic Gathering MP Taymur Jumblatt. (NNA)
Head of the Democratic Gathering MP Taymur Jumblatt. (NNA)
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Hezbollah Accused of Seeking to Eliminate Electoral Opponents

Head of the Democratic Gathering MP Taymur Jumblatt. (NNA)
Head of the Democratic Gathering MP Taymur Jumblatt. (NNA)

The Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) and Lebanese Forces warned that the Hezbollah party and its allies were waging a "battle of elimination and existence" in the parliamentary elections.

Addressing an electoral rally in Mount Lebanon, head of the Democratic Gathering MP Taymur Jumblatt said: "You want to eliminate us, but we want partnership with everyone. You want to destroy the nation for others, while we want to build it for the Lebanese people."

"You want to hold Lebanon hostage of negotiations to protect the regime of killing and a nuclear Iran. We want a sovereign and independent Lebanon," he declared.

"Let us come together in partnership instead of elimination. This is a nation for everyone," he stressed.

The elections are set for May 15.

LF MP Antoine Habshi said Hezbollah was waging an existential battle against the Lebanese Forces in eastern Lebanon.

Speaking at a press conference he remarked that the electoral battle in the Baalbek-al-Hermel district had recently taken a turn towards violence and intimidation instead of freedom and democracy.

He held the Interior Ministry and security forces responsible for the violations. He also said Hezbollah would be blamed for "any drop of blood spilled."

The MP had held the conference after three out of six Shiite electoral candidates withdrew from the same list that is backed by the LF in the Baalbek-al-Hermel district.

The LF said they were forced to quit the race after being pressured by Hezbollah.

Moreover, Habshi charged that Hezbollah was bribing opponents a million Lebanese pounds and voters two million pounds so they would not take part in the elections.

He added that the party was even confiscating the identification cards of Shiite opponents to prevent them from voting.

The party dismissed the claims, saying they were part of a smear campaign against it.

Party MP Hassan Ezzedine said: "We are competing so that the turnout would be very high We are therefore seeking not only the victory of Hezbollah lists, but also the national ones that were formed through alliances between Hezbollah and its allies across the country."

He stressed that the party had formed national lists and were competing for victory in the elections that "would shape a new political scene that wants to address the country's crises and the people's suffering."



Berri: Bloodshed in South Lebanon is ‘Urgent Call’ to Compel Israel to Withdraw

26 January 2025, Lebanon, Kfarkila: A Lebanese soldier opens the road to an ambulance carrying a wounded Lebanese shot by Israeli army as he tried to enter into his southern Lebanese village of Aitaroun. Photo: Marwan Naamani/dpa
26 January 2025, Lebanon, Kfarkila: A Lebanese soldier opens the road to an ambulance carrying a wounded Lebanese shot by Israeli army as he tried to enter into his southern Lebanese village of Aitaroun. Photo: Marwan Naamani/dpa
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Berri: Bloodshed in South Lebanon is ‘Urgent Call’ to Compel Israel to Withdraw

26 January 2025, Lebanon, Kfarkila: A Lebanese soldier opens the road to an ambulance carrying a wounded Lebanese shot by Israeli army as he tried to enter into his southern Lebanese village of Aitaroun. Photo: Marwan Naamani/dpa
26 January 2025, Lebanon, Kfarkila: A Lebanese soldier opens the road to an ambulance carrying a wounded Lebanese shot by Israeli army as he tried to enter into his southern Lebanese village of Aitaroun. Photo: Marwan Naamani/dpa

Lebanon’s Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said that Sunday's bloodshed in southern Lebanon “is a clear and urgent call for the international community to act immediately.”

Israeli forces in southern Lebanon on Sunday opened fire on protesters demanding their withdrawal in line with a ceasefire agreement, killing at least 22 and injuring 124, Lebanese health officials reported.
The dead included six women and a Lebanese army soldier, the Health Ministry said in a statement. People were reported wounded in nearly 20 villages in the border area.

In remarks carried by the Lebanese media, Berri also said that the international community should “compel Israel to withdraw from occupied Lebanese territories.”

Berri, whose Amal Movement party is allied with Hezbollah, served as an interlocutor between the militant group and the US during ceasefire negotiations.