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Berri's Memoirs: Rafik Hariri was Wary of 'Vengeful' Electoral Districts Distribution

Lebanese former PM Rafik Hariri (R) and Speaker Nabih Berri in 1996. (Getty Images)
Lebanese former PM Rafik Hariri (R) and Speaker Nabih Berri in 1996. (Getty Images)
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Berri's Memoirs: Rafik Hariri was Wary of 'Vengeful' Electoral Districts Distribution

Lebanese former PM Rafik Hariri (R) and Speaker Nabih Berri in 1996. (Getty Images)
Lebanese former PM Rafik Hariri (R) and Speaker Nabih Berri in 1996. (Getty Images)

In the first episode of a series of excerpts from the memoirs of Lebanon’s Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, Asharq Al-Awsat sheds light on the last meeting between Berri and late former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, the day of his assassination on Feb. 14, 2015.

The memoirs entitled, “Al-Thuqb al-Aswad” (The Black Hole), edited by Nabil Haitham, will soon be published by Dar Bilal.

Berri describes the year 2005 as the worst in the history of Lebanon, as it was devastated by Hariri’s assassination.

On Monday, February 14, 2005, Prime Minister Rafik Hariri arrived at the Parliament before noon.

A crowd of deputies gathered in the public hall, while well-trained media professionals waited in the outer lobby to keep abreast of the event: the parliamentary elections law was the main subject of discussion in a session of the joint parliamentary committees that was scheduled for the day.

The general political atmosphere was tense. The distribution of electoral districts stirred confusion and internal political disputes, especially over the Beirut constituencies. Hariri was trying to confront what he considered at that time electoral distributions that aimed at undermining him.

From Parliament’s outer courtyard, Hariri made his way towards the corridor leading to the speaker’s wing. He met with Minister Ali Hassan Khalil and the two men walked together to the office of the Director of Protocol in Parliament, Ali Hamad. They stayed there for about three quarters of an hour, where they mainly discussed the electoral law. Hariri was not comfortable... he was wary of the distribution of some electoral districts, specifically in Beirut. He described some politicians’ attempts as “vengeful”.

Hariri told Khalil that it was very necessary to reach a consensual electoral law, because tension would not serve this purpose, but would keep matters in a vicious circle.

“I am open to solutions in order to reach a consensus, and I am ready to proceed immediately to a settlement that will lead to an understanding on the election law,” he told Khalil, as quoted in Berri’s memoirs.

Hariri was reassured with the position of Berri, which was conveyed to him by his political aide. He told Khalil: “I am satisfied with the position of Berri… I seriously tell you that I support any discussion that leads to agreement on a law… You can talk about this issue with [then-Interior] Minister Suleiman Franjieh.” Khalil agreed to his request.

At the end of the meeting, Hariri and Khalil left the office of the Protocol Director. The former premier entered Berri’s office, where he stayed for a short time, and then went out to see Khalil about to attend a joint committee session in Parliament’s hall.

Hariri quickly reached to the minister and told him: “Come on, let’s go have coffee.” (He was heading to Café L’étoile, facing the Parliament building, as some friends were waiting for him there). Khalil replied: “I cannot. I want to attend the committee meeting.”

Hariri joked with him, saying: “You don’t want to miss the meeting, or you’re running away because you’re afraid being seen with me?”

Khalil replied, amused: “No, I swear I want to attend the session!”

The two men laughed, shook hands, and Hariri walked out of Parliament, after whispering in Khalil’s ear an expressive message to Berri.

This was Hariri’s last stop in the House of Representatives. He had a cup of coffee at L’étoile and left a few minutes later. That was the last trip that took him to the assassination point facing the St. George Hotel.

Berri recounts his last encounter with the late prime minister:

“I was in Parliament as usual, MP Mohammad Safadi asked me for a short meeting, and as soon as we started talking, Hariri slightly opened the door of my office and I invited him to join us…”

“He entered, approached us with quiet steps, greeted us, and we shook hands. He was smiling warmly… Then we started talking about some matters, some of which were personal, and others general... I noticed that day that he was smiling a lot.”

Berri continues: “After leaving my office, he met MP Ali Hassan Khalil, and sent me a verbal message in which he said: ‘Tell your teacher, no matter what... he will not meet any person who more loyal than Rafik Hariri to him.’

“I was talking on the phone with Hussein al-Husseini, when I felt a powerful blast. The office door shook… Glass fell from the ceiling of the public hall… The sound was very loud. I felt that the explosion had taken place near the Parliament building.

“A Few moments later, I received the tragic news: Rafik Hariri was killed.

“At that moment, I realized that an earthquake had struck Lebanon, and turned it upside down, leading it towards danger and the unknown.

“This cowardly operation targets Lebanon, in its national unity, economy, mission, and security stability. I call on the Lebanese to be wary of this conspiracy targeting Lebanon, through this horrific crime, and to close ranks and rise to the level of national responsibility,” Berri wrote in Hariri’s obituary.

The speaker recounts: “The funerals took place in Beirut on February 16, 2005. I sat between former President Amin Gemayel and [Syria’s] Abdel Halim Khaddam, who had arrived in Ain al-Tineh and went with me to the ceremony. We were also accompanied by Amr Moussa.

“Chaos was overwhelming and crowds came in huge numbers… The scene was impressive and sad...

“I felt great sadness for Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Once they asked me about my relationship with him, and I said that a long history brought us together; we became friends, quarreled and reconciled, over and over... In short, Rafik Hariri was a friend.

“They asked me many times: Who benefits from the assassination of Prime Minister Rafik Hariri? My answer was clear: The only beneficiary is the enemy of Lebanon… those who want to destroy Lebanon… The Lebanese know who their enemy is... Israel.”

The parliament speaker says that Hariri’s assassination dragged the country into an extremely dangerous and complex internal situation. The political crisis reached an unprecedented level ignited by harsh and direct accusations against what was called the “Lebanese-Syrian security system” at the time.

The Lebanese people were divided between two opposing camps: The March 8 and the March 14 forces.

Amid sharp divisions between the two colliding fronts, Lebanon endured tumultuous years of division over a number of issues, such as the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, Syrian troop withdrawal from Lebanon, the weapons of the resistance [Hezbollah], UN Security Council resolution 1559, and the presidential elections at the end of President Emile Lahoud’s term.

Berri says that following the resignation of Prime Minister Omar Karami’s government under street pressure, tension mounted and divisions deepened further. The country became even more divided, with rival camps trading offensive accusations, which put the country on the “crater of a political volcano in every sense of the word.”

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Report: Europe’s Options in the Strait of Hormuz Are Few and Risky

A cargo ship in the Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in United Arab Emirates, March 11, 2026. (Reuters file)
A cargo ship in the Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in United Arab Emirates, March 11, 2026. (Reuters file)
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Report: Europe’s Options in the Strait of Hormuz Are Few and Risky

A cargo ship in the Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in United Arab Emirates, March 11, 2026. (Reuters file)
A cargo ship in the Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in United Arab Emirates, March 11, 2026. (Reuters file)

When senior officials from 40 countries met virtually this week to discuss how to bring shipping traffic back to the Strait of Hormuz, Italy’s foreign minister had a proposal. He urged them to establish a “humanitarian corridor” allowing safe passage for fertilizer and other crucial goods headed to impoverished nations.

The plan, described after the meeting by Italian officials, was one of several competing proposals from Europe and beyond that were meant to prevent the Iran war from causing widespread hunger. But it was not endorsed by the envoys on the call, and the meeting ended with no concrete plan to reopen the strait, militarily or otherwise, reported the New York Times.

European leaders are under pressure from US President Donald Trump to commit military assets, immediately, to end Iran’s blockage of the strait and tame a growing global energy and economic crisis. They have refused to meet his demands by sending warships now. Instead, they are hotly debating what to do to help unclog the vital shipping lane once the war ends.

But they are struggling to rally around a plan of action.

That partly reflects the slow gears of diplomacy in Europe and the sheer number of nations, including Gulf states, that are invested in safeguarding the strait once the war ends. Many nations involved in the talks, including Italy and Germany, have insisted that any international effort be blessed by the United Nations, which could slow action further. Military leaders will take up the issue in discussions next week.

More than anything, the struggle reflects how difficult it could be to actually secure the strait under a fragile peace — for Europe or for anyone else. None of the options available to Europe, the Gulf states and other countries look foolproof, even under the assumption that the major fighting will have stopped.

Naval escorts

French officials, including President Emmanuel Macron, have repeatedly raised the possibility that French naval vessels could help escort merchant ships through the strait after the war ends.

American officials have pushed for Europeans and other allies, like Japan, to escort ships sailing under their own countries’ flags.

Naval escorts are expensive. Also, their air defense systems alone might not be sufficient to stop some types of attacks, like drone strikes, should Iran choose to start firing again.

“What does the world expect, what does Donald Trump expect, from let’s say a handful or two handfuls of European frigates there in the Strait of Hormuz,” Defense Minister Boris Pistorius of Germany said last month, “to achieve what the powerful American Navy cannot manage there alone?”

Sweep for mines

German and Belgian officials, among others, say they are prepared to send minesweepers to clear the strait of explosives after the war.

Western military leaders aren’t convinced that Iran has actually mined the strait, in part because some Iranian ships still pass through it. So while minesweepers might be deployed as part of a naval escort, they might not have much to do.

Help from above

Another option is sending fighter jets and drones to intercept any Iranian air assaults on ships. American officials have pushed Europe to do this.

It is quite expensive and still not guaranteed to work. Iran can attack ships with a single soldier in a speedboat, and if just a few attempts succeed, that could be enough to spook insurers and shipowners out of attempting passage.

Diplomacy

Another option are negotiations and economic leverage to pressure Iran to refrain from future attacks, and deploy a variety of military means to enforce that. This effort would go beyond Europe. On Thursday, the German foreign ministry called on China to use its influence with Iran “constructively” to help end the hostilities.

This option is expensive and still not guaranteed. Negotiations seem to have done little to stop the fighting. But this may be Europe’s best bet, for lack of a better one.

What if none of that works?

Iranian officials said this week that they would continue to control traffic through the strait after the war. They have already made plans to make ships pay tolls for passing through the strait, which is supposed to be an unfettered waterway under international law.

A continued blockage risks global economic disaster. Countries around the world rely on shipments through the strait for fuel and fertilizer, among other necessities.

In some regions, shortages loom. In others, like Europe, high oil, gas and fertilizer prices have raised the specter of spiking inflation and cratering economic growth.

“The big threat right now is stagflation,” said Hanns Koenig, a managing director at Aurora Energy Research, a Berlin consultancy. “You’ve got higher prices, and they strangle the tiny growth we would have seen this year.”

*Jim Tankersley for the New York Times

Features

US Military Jets Hit in Iran War Are the First Shot Down by Enemy Fire in Over 20 Years

An F-15E Strike Eagle turns toward the Panamint range over Death Valley National Park, Calif., on Feb. 27, 2017. (AP)
An F-15E Strike Eagle turns toward the Panamint range over Death Valley National Park, Calif., on Feb. 27, 2017. (AP)
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US Military Jets Hit in Iran War Are the First Shot Down by Enemy Fire in Over 20 Years

An F-15E Strike Eagle turns toward the Panamint range over Death Valley National Park, Calif., on Feb. 27, 2017. (AP)
An F-15E Strike Eagle turns toward the Panamint range over Death Valley National Park, Calif., on Feb. 27, 2017. (AP)

Iran shooting down two American military jets marks an exceedingly rare assault for the US that has not happened in more than 20 years and shows Iran’s continued ability to hit back despite President Donald Trump asserting it has been “completely decimated.”

The attacks came five weeks after US and Israeli strikes first pounded Iran, with Trump saying earlier this week that Tehran's “ability to launch missiles and drones is dramatically curtailed."

Iran shot down a US F15-E Strike Eagle fighter jet Friday, with one service member getting rescued and the search still underway for a second, US officials say. Iranian state media also said a US A-10 attack aircraft crashed after being hit by Iranian defense forces.

The last time a US warplane was shot down by enemy fire in combat was an A-10 Thunderbolt II during the 2003 US invasion of Iraq, said retired Air Force Brig. Gen. Houston Cantwell, a former F-16 fighter pilot.

But, he said, that’s because the US had largely been fighting insurgents who didn’t have the same anti-aircraft capabilities. The fact that there have not been more fighter jets lost in Iran, Cantwell said, is a testament to the capabilities of US forces.

"The fact that this hasn’t happened until now is an absolute miracle,” said Cantwell, who served four combat tours and is now a senior resident fellow at the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies. “We’re flying combat missions here, they are being shot at every day.”

Shoulder-fired missile likely used, experts say

US Central Command said in a statement Wednesday that American forces have flown more than 13,000 missions in the Iran war while striking more than 12,300 targets.

After more than a month of punishing US-Israeli airstrikes, a degraded Iranian military nonetheless remains a stubborn foe. Its steady stream of strikes against Israel and Gulf Arab neighbors have been causing regional upheaval and global economic shock.

When it comes to American dominance over Iran's airspace, there’s still a distinction between air superiority and air supremacy, said Behnam Ben Taleblu, Iran program senior director at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a hawkish Washington think tank.

“A disabled air defense system is not a destroyed air defense system,” he said. “We shouldn’t be shocked that they’re still fighting.”

American planes have been flying missions at lower altitudes, which makes them more vulnerable to Iran's missiles, Taleblu said. It’s possible that Iran fired at the F-15 with a surface-to-air missile, but it's more likely that a portable, shoulder-fired missile was used, he said. Those are much harder to detect and reflect how Iran is “weak but still lethal.”

“This is a regime that is fighting for its life,” he said.

Mark Cancian, a retired Marine colonel and a senior defense adviser with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, agreed that a shoulder-fired missile was likely used against the fighter jet.

Nonetheless, the American air war against Iran has been a “tremendous success” so far, he said.

To put things in perspective, he said the loss rate for American warplanes flying over Germany during World War II was 3% at one point, which would equal about 350 warplanes in the US war against Iran.

“But then there’s the political side — you have an American public that is accustomed to fighting bloodless wars,” Cancian said. “Then a large part of the country doesn’t support the war. So to them, any loss is unacceptable.”

Pilots are trained on what to do if their plane is hit

The last US jet shot down in combat was struck by an Iraqi surface-to-air missile over Baghdad on April 8, 2003. The pilot safely ejected and was rescued, according to the Air Force.

In high-threat environments like missions over Iran, Cantwell, the retired general, said an aviator's blood pressure goes up and they become highly alert to incoming missiles. Those are typically either infrared- or radar-guided missiles, he said, requiring different evasive tactics.

If they are hit and need to eject from their aircraft, they are trained on what to do next, he said.

Pilots learn to check for wounds after a violent ejection and the shock of a missile explosion and, most crucially, how they are going to communicate their location so rescuers can find them.

At the same time, he said, the enemy is likely working to intercept the communications or even spoof the location.

Helicopters are more at risk than other aircraft

The planes that went down Friday were not the first crewed American aircraft to be lost overall in Iran.

A military helicopter and airplane exploded in 1980 during an aborted mission to rescue several dozen American hostages at the US embassy in Tehran, according to the Air Force Historical Support Division.

After a series of setbacks, including severe dust storms and mechanical failures, the mission was called off. As the aircraft took off, the rotor blades of one of the RH-53 helicopters collided with an EC-130 aircraft full of fuel and both exploded, killing eight.

More US helicopters have been shot down in recent decades, including a MH-47 Army Chinook helicopter that was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade in Afghanistan in 2005, killing 16. Helicopters are more dangerous because “the lower and the slower, the more susceptible you are,” Cantwell said.

That’s why those who went out on this week's rescue missions, likely in helicopters, he said, did “such a brave and honorable act.”

Features

Iran Leaders Join Crowds on Tehran’s Streets to Project Control in Wartime

An Iranian flag is seen on a residential building that was damaged by recent strikes at Vahdat town in Karaj, southwest of Tehran on April 3, 2026. (AFP)
An Iranian flag is seen on a residential building that was damaged by recent strikes at Vahdat town in Karaj, southwest of Tehran on April 3, 2026. (AFP)
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Iran Leaders Join Crowds on Tehran’s Streets to Project Control in Wartime

An Iranian flag is seen on a residential building that was damaged by recent strikes at Vahdat town in Karaj, southwest of Tehran on April 3, 2026. (AFP)
An Iranian flag is seen on a residential building that was damaged by recent strikes at Vahdat town in Karaj, southwest of Tehran on April 3, 2026. (AFP)

After more than a month of being stalked by targeted assassinations, Iran's leadership has adopted a new tactic to show it is still in control - with senior officials walking openly in the streets among small crowds who have gathered in support of the regime.

In recent days, Iran's president and foreign minister have separately mixed with groups of several hundred people in central Tehran. On Tuesday, state television aired footage of the two posing for selfies, talking to members of the public and shaking hands with supporters who had gathered in public areas.

According to insiders and analysts, the appearances are part of a calculated effort by Iran's theocratic leadership to project resilience and authority — not only over the vital Strait of Hormuz but also over the population — despite a sustained US-Israeli campaign aimed at "obliterating" it.

One insider close to the hardline establishment said such public outings are intended to show that the regime is "unshaken by strikes and that it remains in control and vigilant" as the war grinds on.

The US-Israeli war ‌on Iran began on ‌February 28 with the killing of veteran Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and several senior military ‌commanders ⁠in waves of ⁠strikes that have since continued to target top officials.

Iran's new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, has not been seen in public since taking over on March 8 from his father. Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, meanwhile, was removed from Israel's hit list amid mediation efforts last month, including by Pakistan, to bring Tehran and Washington together for talks to end the war.

Talks aimed at ending the war have since appeared to have petered out, as Tehran brands US peace proposals "unrealistic". Against that backdrop, recent public appearances by President Masoud Pezeshkian and Araqchi appear designed to project defiance, if not a convincing display of public support.

A senior Iranian source said officials' public presence demonstrates that "the establishment is not intimidated by Israel's targeted killing of top Iranian ⁠figures".

Asked whether Iran's foreign minister or president were on any sort of kill list, an Israeli ‌military spokesperson, Nadav Shoshani, said on Friday he would not "speak about specific personnel."

NIGHTLY RALLIES TO ‌SHOW RESILIENCE

Despite widespread destruction, Tehran appears emboldened by surviving weeks of intense US-Israeli attacks, firing on Gulf countries hosting US troops and demonstrating its ability ‌to effectively block the Strait of Hormuz.

On Wednesday, US President Donald Trump vowed more aggressive strikes on Iran, without offering a timeline ‌for ending hostilities. Tehran responded by warning the United States and Israel that "more crushing, broader and more destructive" attacks were in store.

Encouraged by clerical rulers, supporters of the regime take to the streets each night, filling public squares to show loyalty even as bombs rain down across the country.

Analysts say the establishment is also seeking to raise the "political and reputational" cost of the strikes at a time when civilian casualties are deeply disturbing for Iranians.

Omid Memarian, ‌a senior Iran analyst at DAWN, a Washington-based think tank, said the decision to send officials into gatherings reflects a layered strategy, including an effort to sustain the morale of core supporters ⁠at a moment of acute pressure.

"The system ⁠relies heavily on this base; if its supporters withdraw from public space, its ability to project control and authority weakens significantly," Memarian said.

Speaking to state television, some in the crowds voice unwavering loyalty to Iran's leadership; others oppose the bombing of their country regardless of politics; and some have a stake in the system, including government employees, students and others whose livelihoods are tied to it.

Hadi Ghaemi, head of the New York-based Center for Human Rights in Iran, said the establishment is using such loyal crowds as human shields to raise the cost of any assassination attempts.

"By being in the middle of large crowds they have protections that would make Israeli-American attacks against them very bloody and generate sympathy worldwide," he said.

POTENTIAL PROTESTERS STAY OFF STREETS AT NIGHT

The Islamic republic emerged from a 1979 revolution backed by millions of Iranians. But decades of rule marked by corruption, repression and mismanagement have thinned that support, alienating many ordinary people.

While there has been little sign so far of anti-government protests that erupted in January and abated after a deadly crackdown, the establishment has adopted harsh measures, such as arrests, executions and large-scale deployment of security forces, to prevent any sparks of dissent.

Rights groups have warned about "rushed executions" during wartime after Iran hanged at least seven political prisoners during the war.

"Many potential protesters are frightened by the continuing presence of armed men and violent crowds in the streets and largely stay at home once darkness falls," Ghaemi said.