Maronite Patriarch Mar Bechara Boutros Al-Rahi’s supportive positions towards the Army Commander General Joseph Aoun did not please Free Patriotic Movement Leader MP Gebran Bassil. 

Information indicated that the meeting between Al-Rahi and Bassil was rather heated and tense, especially since the Patriarch revealed Bassil's efforts to overthrow the Army Commander, especially his visit to Bnachii despite the disagreement with Marada Movement Leader Sleiman Frangieh. 

In this context, “Nidaa Al-Watan” newspaper mentioned that Bassil's response came quickly.

The FPM Leader sent his Defense Minister Maurice Slim to present caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati with a barter, which is: The Movement is ready to cooperate with the Cabinet despite its previous “rejecting” positions if Mikati agrees with him in a basket of appointments, namely a military council and a new commander.

In this regard, three names were mentioned for the Army Command position: Elie Akl, Maroun Qobayati, and Tony Kahwaji. 

The newspaper pointed out, "When Mikati asked about the Christian consensus on the Commander’s name and the overall military council, he was told that the FPM cover is sufficient, especially since it is inevitably supported by Hezbollah and Berri.”

Slim justified Bassil's step by the need to keep up with the Gaza war stage, while it was understood that Bassil and the resistance team wanted to "snatch" the exceptional southern and regional circumstances to cause a complete "coup" in the army.

Bassil fears that post-war arrangements would impose equations that need balanced and experienced leaders like Joseph Aoun who has local and international relations and is capable of being at an equal distance from all parties. 

Bassil's main motive is definitely to keep Aoun away from the leadership to reduce his presidential chances.

In this context, observers considered that accepting Bassil’s barter would make the army lose the material and moral support that it enjoys from Washington and the Gulf countries. It would also lose the trust of a large part of the Lebanese people who consider it a neutral institution that represents and unifies all the Lebanese. 

This article was initially published in Arabic in Nidaa Al Watan, translated by Christina Rai.