Nasrallah Meets Jumblat, Discusses with Zarif Means to Support Gaza

Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has discussed with Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat the need to elect a president as soon as possible and boost coordination among security agencies, both parties announced on Sunday.

The two leaders held their meeting in the presence of Wafiq Safa, head of Hizbullah's Liaison and Coordination Unit, according to a joint statement issued after the talks.

The communique did not mention the time or place of the meeting.

“Discussions tackled the general situations in Lebanon and the region, especially the Zionist crimes in Gaza against the Palestinian people,” it said.

“The two parties stressed that Palestine remains the central cause, which rises above all political differences, underlining their solidarity with the Palestinian people and Gaza in their resilience in the face of occupation,” the statement added.

At least 1,050 Palestinians have been killed and 6,000 wounded since Israel launched a fierce assault on Gaza 20 days ago.

Nasrallah and Jumblat also touched on the events in Iraq, “specifically the displacement of Christians from Mosul,” noting that both Christians and Muslim are being slaughtered at the hands of “the takfiris.”

The two leaders condemned the practices of the extremist Islamic State group, emphasizing “the need to discuss means to protect Iraq's unity and political diversity.”

IS jihadists last week ordered hundreds of Christian families in Mosul to convert to Islam, pay tribute, or leave the city, prompting thousands to flee. Christians and other minorities who failed to comply were threatened with execution, while the property of those who left the city was forfeited to the Islamic State.

Nasrallah and Jumblat also discussed the situations in Lebanon, mainly the government's work and the need to “boost it and activate it.”

According to the joint statement, the two leaders expressed their belief that a new president must be elected quickly in order to end the current political vacuum.

“Talks also addressed the security situation in Lebanon and the two parties agreed on the necessity to maintain domestic coherence and intensify the measures that were taken to preserve the current stability in the country through boosting the level of coordination among security agencies,” the statement added.

As for bilateral ties between Hizbullah and the PSP, both sides “expressed their satisfaction over the progress of this relation,” underscoring “the need to develop it in a manner that would serve the two parties' interests and the national interest.”

Jumblat has recently criticized Hizbullah in a fierce manner, accusing it of receiving orders from Iran and urging it to end “the historic sin” and withdraw its fighters from neighboring Syria.

Separately, Nasrallah received a phone call from Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif during which they tackled the latest developments in Gaza.

Talks addressed “means of support to stop the (Israeli) aggression and lift the siege” that is imposed on the impoverished Palestinian region, Lebanon's state-run National News Agency reported.

Hizbullah's leader has also met with Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and an accompanying Iranian delegation, in the presence of Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon Mohammed Fathali.

The conferees discussed “the situations in Lebanon and the region in general and in Gaza in particular, demonstrating the ongoing terrorist, Zionist aggression and means to back Gaza's people and resistance.”

During a Quds Days ceremony on Friday, Nasrallah had announced that his party was closely following the battle in Gaza, vowing that Hizbullah will do anything it perceives as duty to support Gaza's people and resistance movements.

Y.R.