On Friday, the political movement that the Quintet Committee's initiative will lead was not active, as it is anticipated to commence at the beginning of next week.
This article was originally published in and translated from the Lebanese newspaper Nidaa Al-Watan.
Regarding this matter, Alaa Moussa, the Egyptian Ambassador to Lebanon and a member of the committee, explained that "the activities of the Quintet Committee will involve everyone to confirm their dedication to electing a president."
He said, "The desired truce in Gaza is an opportunity to produce ideas, and the details will not be considered as obstacles if the signs are positive."
In parallel, attention was drawn to the response delivered Friday by the Caretaker Minister of Foreign Affairs, Abdallah Bou Habib, to the French Ambassador Hervé Magro regarding the French initiative related to outlining a vision for stability in southern Lebanon.
Sources informed Nidaa Al-Watan that it seems the government entirely overlooked the core of the initiative, especially regarding the execution of Resolution 1701, mainly to empty the southern area of the Litani River of Hezbollah's armed presence.
According to this information, the response is contained in one page. The government avoided answering anything related to the clauses concerning Hezbollah's withdrawal to the north of the Litani.
It also avoided responding to matters related to technical issues concerning the deployment of the Lebanese army with the support of UNIFIL forces.
As a result, the answers to what the French initiative requires are within the general framework, echoing the "hollow phrases" repeated by the government regarding "the full implementation of Resolution 1701 and the cessation of Israeli aggressions."
The official response to the Tripartite Security Committee, a key point in the French initiative that includes representatives from Lebanon, Israel, and UNIFIL, was limited to stating that the resumption of the committee's meetings at the UNIFIL headquarters in Naqoura is linked to "the cessation of Israeli aggressions" without providing additional details.
It is worth noting that the French initiative reached Beirut in the middle of last month, initially titled "Security Arrangements between Lebanon and Israel."
The first part refers to the "April 1996 understanding." It proposes "the formation of a monitoring group composed of the United States, France, Lebanon, and Israel to monitor the implementation of security arrangements to be agreed upon and to address complaints that the parties may submit."
The security arrangements are set to be implemented in three stages, one of which relates to "the dismantling of Hezbollah sites and the withdrawal of fighters and missile and combat systems within a range of 10 kilometers north of the Blue Line."
In return, Israel intends to "halt all types of aerial activities over Lebanon."
According to observers, the government, which remained silent for over a month waiting to respond to the French initiative, only "mumbled" and nothing more.
Meanwhile, the scene on the southern borders, which witnessed a new round of Israeli airstrikes and Hezbollah rocket attacks on Friday, has not changed.
Meanwhile, Reuters reported that Quds chief Esmail Qaani visited Beirut last February.
He met with Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah for at least the third time since the Gaza war started on October 7th.
During the meeting, Nasrallah reassured Qaani that Iran does not want to be dragged into a war with Israel or the United States and that Hezbollah will fight alone.
Nasrallah told Qaani, "This is our fight," according to Reuters, citing an "Iranian source with knowledge of the discussions."