Hezbollah chief calls for government to be given a chance to save Lebanon
Secretary-General of Lebanon’s Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, has called on people to give the government of Prime Minister Hassan Diab a chance to prove its competence and save the country from its crisis.
“The government has prepared a comprehensive plan which is an important step to move forward,” Nasrallah said, adding that national unity is needed to keep the country strong.
He explained that the plan is open for discussion and amendment even after its approval.
However, Nasrallah explained that Hezbollah does not oppose the country’s plan to seek external help, but will never agree “to blindly surrender, to go wearing handcuffs and give ourselves to the International Monetary Fund [IMF].”
The rescue plan prepared by Diab depends mainly on requesting financial assistance from the IMF.
“As I understand it, the government is not going to tell the IMF ‘do what you want with Lebanon’. There will be help and dialogue, there’s no problem with that,” Nasrallah said.
Nasrallah has also refuted claims that the movement wants to control the banking sector in Lebanon, but noted that the banking sector did not provide any assistance to Lebanon during the severe financial and monetary crisis it is facing.
Supporters of Lebanon’s Hezbollah gather near a poster of their leader Hassan Nasrallah during a ceremony to mark Ashura on 20 September 2018 in Beirut [Anwar Amro/AFP/Getty Images]
May 6, 2020 at 11:22 am
Source: Hezbollah chief calls for government to be given a chance to save Lebanon – Middle East Monitor