As efforts continue to prevent a vacuum in the top position of the military institution, Parliament held two sessions on Thursday, which were both boycotted by the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM)’s bloc, whose head, MP Gebran Bassil, opposes the extension of the term of Lebanese Army Commander General Joseph Aoun, who is due to retire in January.
The participation of representatives of the Lebanese Forces (LF) party, which was rejecting legislation in light of the presidential vacuum, came based on an “agreement” between the LF and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, to secure a constitutional quorum for the session, in exchange for Army chief tenure’s extension being presented through fast-track law proposals, which would be submitted by a number of parliamentary blocs, led by the LF.
For its part, the Kataeb Party boycotted the sessions, rejecting attempts to pass a legislation in light of the presidential vacuum, and affirming support for the extension of Aoun’s term.
Representatives of the Renewal Bloc (MPs Michel Moawad, Fouad Makhzoumi and Ashraf Rifi) and the Change Alliance (MPs Michel Douaihy, Mark Daou, and Waddah Al-Sadiq), in addition to lawmakers Firas Hamdan, Yassin Yassin, Paula Yacoubian and Melhem Khalaf, watched the session from the area dedicated for the media on the second floor of the Parliament building.
As the countdown begins to refer the Army Commander to retirement at the beginning of 2024, Berri is still counting on the government to complete the extension during Friday’s session.
In previous remarks, the speaker stressed that if the government failed to resolve this issue, Parliament “will carry out its duties to prevent a vacuum in this sensitive position.”
