After a series of meetings with religious authorities that we visited, and as we prepare to complete them with all spiritual and political authorities,  Al Tajadod Bloc met today with the Speaker of the Parliament, Mr Nabih Berri, following its trend to continue its communication with all. Also, considering him as the head of the legislative authority, which is the mother institution, elected by the Lebanese people, assuming a significant responsibility for protecting Lebanon amidst the critical events going on in the region and Lebanon.

We confirm the candid atmosphere that prevailed during the meeting, and the Bloc considers that Speaker Berri’s constant insistence that Lebanon should remain under the umbrella of the international legitimacy is the natural and required position to prevent Lebanon from assuming the consequences of a war.

Considering this, we believe that stressing on the umbrella of the international legitimacy resolutions, specifically UN Resolution 1701, requires the complete implementation of this resolution, which provisions are all clear and call for no interpretation. What is required is for the Lebanese army to assume, in coordination with UNIFIL, the responsibility for controlling the borders and restoring the State’s sovereign decision; primarily, ensuring Lebanon’s protection from the risks of war and destruction.

Here, we stress on our full support to the Palestinian people’s cause and our rejection of the attacks on Gaza and the West Bank, which have resulted in a humanitarian catastrophe. We consider the Arab decision, adopted by the United Nations, a significant step in ending the suffering in Gaza, and do call on the international community to take immediate action to stop this tragedy and return to the peace process to recover the Palestinian national rights, the first and most important of which is the establishment of an independent State, according to the two-state solution laid out by the 2002 Arab Summit in Beirut.

What is happening in Gaza should not lead to a division among the Lebanese. Al Tajadod Bloc seeks to play a unifying role with view to establishing a safety net capable of protecting Lebanon. We believe that the recovery by the State of its sovereign decision, the adherence to the constitution and the international legitimacy resolutions, as well as Lebanon’s Arab and international relations, are the only and swiftest way to prevent exposure to the war risks that Lebanon cannot endure its humanitarian and economic consequences.

We also emphasize that protecting Lebanon requires the election of a new president as soon as possible, and this duty falls on the Parliament, which needs to play its role and hold open sessions for its meetings to bring about the election of a new President for the Republic, as we are currently going through the darkest and most critical period in Lebanon’s history.

We hope and work for this communication with Speaker Nabih Berri to be a gateway for the restoration of the activities of the constitutional institutions, as there is a presidential vacuum and a government lacking the confidence of the elected Parliament; which means that there is a lack of readiness to face the rapidly evolving developments in the region. The Bloc will carry on its ongoing efforts deployed with all parties, within the vision it has adopted, aiming at achieving the interests of Lebanon and the Lebanese people, which can only be realized with an effective State that fulfills its role and duties to the fullest.