Geagea: Sayyed Hassan's Promised Ship is a Silly Little Joke

W460

Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea on Monday ridiculed Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah’s declared plans for bringing fuel ships from Iran.

“As for Sayyed Hassan’s promised ship, it is nothing but a silly little joke amid the tragedy that we are living,” Geagea said in a statement.

“Why hasn’t the Iranian oil solved Assad’s problem? It is noteworthy in this regard to mention that Syria’s fuel crisis is what amplified Lebanon’s fuel crisis due to the ongoing systematic smuggling,” the LF leader noted.

“My suggestion to Sayyed Hassan is for Iran to solve Syria’s fuel problem, which would instantly resolve half of Lebanon’s problem,” Geagea went on to say.

Moreover, the LF leader stressed that the only solution to Lebanon’s fuel crisis would be to “liberalize the market” and that the only solution to Lebanon’s problem would be to “liberate the state from those who are currently in power.”

Nasrallah had on Sunday promised that deliveries of Iranian fuel would arrive "in the days to come" to help solve the beleaguered country's dire shortages.

For the second time in four days, Nasrallah said in a televised address that fuel shipments would leave the Islamic republic for Lebanon.

On Sunday alone, fuel prices soared by up to 70 percent after yet another subsidy cut, piling more pressure on people struggling to make ends meet.

The cost of hydrocarbons in Lebanon has now roughly tripled in the two months since the central bank started cutting its support for imports.

The latest cut, which is expected to cause knock-on price hikes on other key commodities, adds to the Mediterranean country's economic crisis, one of the world's worst since the 1850s.

Fuel shortages have forced businesses and government offices to close, even threatening blackouts at hospitals.

In his first televised address on Thursday, Nasrallah announced the departure "in the coming hours" of a shipload of fuel for Lebanon in defiance of U.S. sanctions on Iran.

On Sunday, Nasrallah said the first Iranian ship loaded with fuel was "at sea."

"A second ship will set sail in the next few days, and it will be followed by others," he said.

Hizbullah, a close ally of Iran designated as a "terrorist" group by much of the West, is a major political force in Lebanon but its leaders are under U.S. sanctions.

"We will continue this process as long as Lebanon needs it," Nasrallah said.

"The aim is to help all Lebanese, (not just) Hizbullah supporters or the Shiites," he added.

Questions remain over how Iranian shipments of fuel could reach their destination.

Since February this year, Iran and its arch-enemy Israel have been engaged in a "shadow war" in which vessels linked to each nation have come under attack in waters around the Gulf in tit-for-tat exchanges.

SourceNaharnet
Comments 5
Thumb flamethrower-_ 23 August 2021, 17:36

Here's even bigger joke: the election of Michel Aoun as president is better than no president.

Missing 5-7doud 23 August 2021, 19:12

A joke indeed.

Default-user-icon Lebnani (Guest) 23 August 2021, 21:15

A nut head who brought Aoun to the presidency, while knowing that he was the one who destroyed his party. Is there anything more evident to point to the stupidity of this deranged person. Wasn't he the one who said that Basil would provide 24/24 electricity and was besides him applauding him? Is he so stupid to always make mistakes? Why should we vote for someone who is proving to be a failure every time? He should really disappear and pave the way for new faces. We have thousand of able Christians who could build the country on solid basis. Enough with Stupid people like Gagaa!!!!!

Default-user-icon what ship (Guest) 24 August 2021, 05:17

you all claim iran to be your enemy, why are you pushing his buttons to bring the ship?

Missing fuzzyd72 24 August 2021, 07:59

They are all tainted. Kiloun y3ani kiloun still applies.