October 7, 2026
Baabda Palace witnessed a series of intense ministerial and parliamentary meetings, topped by developments in the general situation in the country, the field situation in the south, in addition to the course of the Lebanese-American-Israeli negotiations, the future of the international emergency forces “UNIFIL” and the repercussions of Resolution 2790.
In this context, the President of the Republic, General Joseph Aoun, received the Minister of Interior and Municipalities, Ahmed Al-Hajjar, where they discussed security and service measures in various regions, especially in the south. Al-Hajjar confirmed, after the meeting, that the southern situation puts enormous pressure on Lebanon as a result of the continued attacks, noting that the visits of the President of the Republic and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam to the city of Nabatieh and the villages of the south are confirmation of the state’s active presence. He explained that the discussion also touched on strengthening security measures in Beirut and other governorates and following up on the affairs of the ministry’s facilities.
Regarding the electoral issue, Al-Hajjar pointed out that the government has submitted a project to amend the current law, which requires the abolition of the magnetic card and the adoption of the “megacentre” with pre-registration, in addition to organizing the expatriate ballot exactly as happened in previous elections, stressing the government’s openness to cooperate on the proposals presented before the parliamentary committee.
President Aoun also received Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants Youssef Raji, who briefed him on the results of his participation in the United Nations General Assembly meetings in New York and Washington, and reviewed with him the latest regional and local developments.
Regarding the issue of the South and the UNIFIL forces, the President of the Republic met with Representative Melhem Khalaf, who was heading a parliamentary delegation, who handed him a legal study on Resolution 2790. Khalaf explained that the study concluded that there were fundamental obstacles preventing the implementation of some of the provisions of the resolution, especially handing over 33 withdrawal points along the Blue Line to the Lebanese army. He warned that the withdrawal of UNIFIL would create a security vacuum that could lead to direct friction between the Lebanese and Israeli armies, calling for a reconsideration of implementation mechanisms. In this context, Khalaf pointed out that President Aoun proposed the possibility of resorting to international alternatives when implementation was not possible, including the formation of a European or European-Arab force to act as a decisive force and monitor the situation.
Regarding the negotiation process, President Aoun received MP Michel Moawad, who stressed the importance of the negotiating option on the condition of confronting Israeli intransigence and Hezbollah’s commitment to handing over its weapons and its decisions to the state. Moawad believed that the extension of state authority and the exclusivity of weapons constitute the basic condition for moving from a state of war to sustainable stability.
In the same political directions, President Aoun discussed with MPs George Okais, Ziad Hawat and Melhem Riachi (delegated by the head of the Lebanese Forces Party, Samir Geagea), local and regional developments and the path of negotiations, where MPs affirmed their support for negotiated solutions to ensure Lebanon’s full sovereignty and the implementation of government decisions related to arms exclusivity.
In the presidential activity, President Aoun received the delegation of the “Arab Levant Forum” and discussed with it the strengthening of regional cooperation, stressing the importance of Arab economic cooperation and maintaining Beirut as the headquarters of specialized Arab unions. On the line of diplomatic bodies, President Aoun sent a cable of congratulations to his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on the occasion of the anniversary of the October 6 victories.
