The Destination of Dahiyeh Meeting: Protecting the New Era

Malak Akil

"A five hour dream." That is how Jean Aziz, the current media advisor to General Michel Aoun, described a meeting with Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah that took place "somewhere in Dahiyeh [Beirut's southern suburbs]" on December 2013. The meeting, which was aired live, ended with a "secret dinner". Aziz later asked, "How can a dinner this humble make you feel like you are taking an elixir or an antidote? And how can the man who has his grip on the maps of the region be sitting here in front of you on this small table?"

The Aounists [supporters of General Michel Aoun] have been "dreaming" for a quarter of a century. But it was only when Nasrallah appeared on a Sunday before "Good Friday" followed by news of a Nasrallah-Aoun meeting, which assured the Aounists that their dream had become a reality. It even seemed that a "coronation" ceremony was not needed anymore.

The Aounists positioned their radars towards Dahiyeh: If Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah wanted Aoun to be president ... then he will be. And so it was. They won their bets. Today they praise the "Master of loyalty" [Sayyed Nasrallah], and they almost "curse the devil" that nearly infected some minds with doubt. Those who doubted may have started paying attention to the "thank you" list a little late. Thanks to the "insight" of Samir Geagea and the "courage" of Saad Hariri!

Years before the "hours of the dream", specifically on February 6, 2008 - two years after the signing of "Mar Mikhael Agreement" - Jean Aziz hosted Aoun and Nasrallah in an interview on Orange TV, which was described as "special and historic".

During that extraordinary interview, the two men revealed, for the first time, that they held a secret meeting following the end of the July 2006 war. The meeting was the only one that was not revealed to the public until both sides decided to disclose it. "The concern continued throughout the period of the July war. When the meeting took place later, there were strong emotions and feelings similar to a meeting between loved ones," Michel Aoun said.

It was not possible for the cameras to obscure the impact of "Sayyed's" prestige on the "General" or the "personal passion" that Sayyed Nasrallah's facial features radiated toward the Christian leader who once told him; my support is "a debt until Judgement Day".

The unprecedented joint media appearance gave Aoun and Sayyed an opportunity to express their views on the announced nomination, which did not exist after the end of President Emile Lahoud's term in office.

Aoun acknowledged, "the political administration, which was right I think, forced me not to declare my candidacy... it was not to humor the Americans. I was originally against my candidacy for managing the political situation at the time."

"Sayyed" said "our candidacy of Michel Aoun was prior to the July war. But...the world...would say that General Aoun is backed by terrorists and extremists. I raised the topic to the party leadership and asked who they supported for the presidency, they unanimously agreed on General Michel Aoun, who I informed about our decision...but I put this announcement at his disposal. When he broached the subject seriously, we sent a delegation to inform the Patriarch (Nasrallah) Sfeir and the Apostolic nuncio [papal ambassador]!"

"From that day", Hizbullah wanted Michel Aoun as president. But there were many "agitators". They affected and influenced the rules of the game. But they failed to affect the top of the pyramid [Sayyed Nasrallah and Aoun] and the very narrow circle, which knows about the secrets behind closed doors.

From the July war and the 7th of May, to "Hizbullah" fighting in Syria, the Orthodox law, the repeated extension of the Parliament's term, the recommendation to extend the tenure of the commander of the army, and the Parliament and Cabinet crisis, the alliance - the mutual understanding between Rabieh and Dahiyeh - remained constant and unwavering.

2015 was a year full of developments, shuffling the cards. It included revelations by Aoun and Samir Geagea as well as Saad Hariri nominating Suleiman Franjieh for the presidency. In the end, Geagea and Hariri gave their blessing to Aoun's nomination for president, while Nabih Berri and Suleiman Franjieh stand on the opposite side of the aisle...and Hizbullah stands by its commitment "I am with Aoun".

This equation is the gist of the latest meeting between Sayyed Nasrallah and General Michel Aoun. The former salutes Aoun's "resistance" and the latter thanks [Nasrallah] for his "loyalty".

Since February 2006, Aoun and Nasrallah met more than once, especially during the most delicate junctions similar to the period after the July war. That includes the day after May 7 before going to Doha, the eve of the formation of the Najib Mikati government, the day after the faltering dialogue between Hariri and Aoun and before the second extension of the Parliament in September 2014, and in April 2015 when a joint statement by Hizbullah and the FPM called for looking into the presidential elections.

Nasrallah said during the first meeting in Mar Mikhael "there is chemistry that can bring people together or disperse them, and I do not know the extent of its truth. But in my first direct personal encounter with the "General" the chemistry existed since the first moment."

Nasrallah did not change his mind about Michel Aoun. Anyone who asks the latter about his strategic ally will not hear anything less than: "he is an exceptional leader and a decisive man. And I am very much influenced by his close commitment to his fighting rules. He is his own master and the master of his temper." Aoun always asserts "Nasrallah never broke a promise to me. And I always refused to allow my allies to doubt him."

A year ago, Aoun admitted jokingly: "I even prevent my family from questioning his obligations towards me. There has always been harmony in our vision of the events even without us meeting. We trust each other so much, and our relationship is transient to politics "as if we were created together".

The visit is a "coronation" to a path as old as the "understanding". It is a normal visit after the visits of Hariri and Nabih Berri ...and before Walid Jumblatt's visit.

One observer says "‘Mango' was usually the password between Martyr Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and his colleague Mustafa Nasser - his advisor tasked with handling the relationship with the Hizbullah leadership. The former [Hariri] asks his man of confidence and the key to his relationship with Dahiyeh "is there Mango in the market today?" Nasser directly understands that Sayyed Hassan is Koraytem's [PM's Residence] guest on the same night. That was when security conditions allowed for such visits.

Between the "General" and "Sayyed" there is no Mango, lemon, or Dates. The absolute secrecy that normally surrounds their meetings cannot be compromised by fruits and vegetables, and not even with gestures. The password between Rabieh and Dahiyeh is not revealed in the councils and on the phone. Mediators meet face-to-face and coordinate and follow up with Hizbullah's security.

Some of Aoun's followers assert that Gebran Bassil alone knows the timing of these meetings. Even some members of Aoun's security detail do not know the destination of his motorcade. But the destination of Sayed Hassan Nasrallah and Michel Aoun is perfectly clear: Protecting the New Era and not just delivering the "General" to Baabda.

Source: As-Safir Newspaper, Translated and Edited by website team