❊ Hezbollah’s Latest Problem: Aoun

Hezbollah is in a hurry and wants to form a government of “national salvation” to face the upcoming STL indictment. All the talk was about the government being formed “soon” and in “this week”, but the party now has two problems: March 14 coyness and Aoun’s intransigence.

March 14 appears to be playing a game of hot and cold with PM designate Najib Miqati. They made resounding statements in BIEL that they have made up their minds about being in the opposition, and yet they dispatch M.P. Harb to negotiate with the PM designate, dangling a prospect of national unity government to Mr. Miqati who is under immense international pressure. It is unclear if this is the result of March 14’s indecision or a deliberate strategy of buying time, but in both cases, Hezbollah is feeling the heat of time passing.

The other problem is with their ally M.P. Aoun. The leader of the FPM is on a personal crusade to “clean up” the ministry of interior and is insisting on appointing one of his own to that seat. He has embarked on a campaign to soil the name of Minister Ziad Baroud who’s one of the most popular Ministers to fill this post, and began a public confrontation with the President designed to undermine his role and challenge his political relevance.

Hezbollah, as you may have guessed, is not happy with what it considers to be a sideshow. So the party is trying to get Aoun to let go of his demand. The Aounists, however, responded with defiance. Here’s how M.P. Simon Abi Ramia reacted:

The bloc will not concede its rights. It is the largest parliamentary bloc in the new majority […] and we are the largest Christian bloc in parliament.

Only time will tell if Hezbollah will bend to that logic, or if Aoun will eventually succumb to Hezbollah’s requests. Odds are that Aoun, who has has noticed that Hezbollah is pressed for time, will get what he wants.