The former head of the Progressive Socialist Party, Walid Jumblatt, returned to one of Lebanon’s most complex and sensitive stages, recalling, during a lengthy interview within the “Witness to the Age” program, pivotal stages of the Lebanese war, and his relationship with a number of Lebanese and Syrian political figures, in addition to the scenes of the assassination of his father, Kamal Jumblatt, and the conflicts that accompanied that stage.
In his speech, Jumblatt revealed the details of his first meeting with the late Syrian President Hafez al-Assad after the assassination of his father, explaining that al-Assad was “surprised by the great similarity” between him and Kamal Jumblatt, adding: “He did not console me, because by doing so he would be confessing to the crime,” in direct reference to his holding the Syrian regime responsible for the assassination of his father in 1977.
Jumblatt said that his first priority after the assassination of Kamal Jumblatt was “stopping the bloodshed,” considering that the group that surrounded him at the time “enabled him to steer the ship despite the difficulties,” pointing out that the Lebanese National Movement decided to elect him as its president after losing its historical leader.
He stopped at the Lebanese war and its ramifications, considering that “the presence of the Palestinians in Lebanon was one of the factors that contributed to the outbreak of the war,” adding that “the Lebanese left sought help from them during that stage.”
In the context of his talk about political relations during the war, Jumblatt confirmed that he had “a kind of friendship” with the Chamoun family despite “the ferocity of the liberals in Tal al-Zaatar,” stressing in return that he did not have “any friendship with Bashir Gemayel.”
He added that Bashir Gemayel “decided at a certain stage in the history of the war to unify what he called the Christian rifle,” considering that “his big mistake was allowing his forces led by Samir Geagea to invade the mountain in 1983,” adding that Gemayel “thought that this would protect the Christians.”
Jumblatt also revealed that he, along with the opposition forces after the assassination of Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, contributed to the release of the head of the “Lebanese Forces” party, Samir Geagea, explaining that they “contributed at the time to the issuance of the amnesty law.”
At another station, Jumblatt spoke about the late President Danny Chamoun, revealing that a week before his assassination “he sent his companion to Al-Mukhtara because he was afraid,” adding that he offered him protection from any possible assassination attempt.
He also stressed that he refused to “insult any prominent Lebanese figure,” speaking about the late President Raymond Edde, who he said was on “the assassination list after the assassination of Kamal Jumblatt,” adding that he interrupted Hafez al-Assad during an insulting conversation about Edde by saying: “Raymond Edde is a human being.”
Jumblatt pointed out that “a right-wing Lebanese team tried to assassinate Raymond Edde before the assassination of Kamal Jumblatt,” adding that “a team from the Sa’iqa in Beirut also tried to carry out the matter.”
He stressed that “the legacy of the Bani Maarouf remaining strong” at a stage when many believed that the Lebanese war had ended was what he inherited from his father, adding: “I always said that the war had not begun yet.”
Recalling the stages of the confrontation with Israel, Jumblatt said that the Progressive Socialist Party participated “along with the National Movement and the Amal Movement in confronting Israel in the south,” within the confrontations witnessed at that stage.
