Report: Bassil Remarks to Push Many to Boycott Baabda Talks

Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil’s bellicose speech on Saturday will make it “difficult” for ex-PMs Saad Hariri, Fouad Saniora, Najib Miqati and Tammam Salam to attend the broad national meeting in Baabda, highly informed sources said.

In remarks to Kuwait’s al-Rai newspaper published Sunday, the sources said such indications had surfaced over the past hours.

Bassil’s “targeting of Marada Movement chief Suleiman Franjieh signals that there will be further complications to the efforts seeking to protect the dialogue meeting,” the sources added, referring to Speaker Nabih Berri’s efforts to convince Hariri and Franjieh to attend.

Parliamentary sources informed on the preparations meanwhile told Asharq al-Awsat newspaper that President Michel Aoun will not put the Caesar Act on the meeting’s agenda.

The sources, however, noted that some participants might raise the topic during the talks.