Shortly after the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, on February 14, 2005, the leader of the Free Patriotic Movement, General Michel Aoun, returned from his Parisian exile to Lebanon. At the time, MP Walid Jumblatt described this return as a “tsunami.” In order to confront him in the parliamentary elections, the “Quadruple Alliance + 1” was formed, which included: the Future Movement, Hezbollah, the Amal Movement, the Progressive Socialist Party, in addition to the Lebanese Forces.
Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah urged the “resistance” audience to vote for the electoral list as it is, that is, to vote “yes” for the Lebanese Forces candidates in the constituencies in which they allied themselves with Hezbollah, and Nasrallah considered this a legitimate mandate. Al-Alsun circulated the famous stereotypical phrase in the elections, “as it is!”
National Dialogue
In 2006, the Lebanese political leaders began a national dialogue, in order to rotate the corners and reach common ground between the partisan and sectarian leaders, and handshakes took place and smiles were exchanged between yesterday’s enemies.
Everyone sat at one table, and photographers raced to take pictures of Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah shaking hands with Samir Geagea, the head of the Executive Committee of the Lebanese Forces, in addition to photos of their gathering with President Michel Aoun and Future Movement leader Saad Hariri. !
press interviews
In 2010, I was working in the Saudi newspaper “Al-Watan” as a “chief itinerant correspondent.” At that time, I prepared a group of interviews from Lebanon and Syria, including: Deputy Secretary-General of Hezbollah, Sheikh Naim Qassem, and Khaled Meshaal, head of the political bureau of Hamas. The head of the Progressive Socialist Party, Walid Jumblatt, the Secretary-General of the Islamic Jihad Movement, Dr. Ramadan Abdullah Shallah, and the head of the Executive Committee of the Lebanese Forces, Dr. Samir Geagea.
Hassan Al-Mustafa during a press interview with MP Walid Jumblatt
The interviews became popular, and topped the front page of “Al-Watan”, some of which were reported by international news agencies, due to the importance of the information provided by these politicians.
Lebanon has been a popular area for journalistic work, meeting political and religious leaders, intellectuals and artists. Al-Watan’s interviews were not the only ones I conducted, but I did private interviews with several personalities for Al-Riyadh newspaper and Elaph website.
Hassan Al-Mustafa during a press interview with the former Secretary General of the Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine, Dr. Ramadan Abdullah Shallah
selectivity!
After more than 12 years of my conversation with Dr. Samir Geagea, WhatsApp groups shared a picture of me with him, with the aim of “discrediting”, under the title “Hassan Al-Mustafa with the butcher of Sabra and Shatila”!
Hassan Mustafa during a press interview with the head of the Executive Office of the Lebanese Forces, Dr. Samir Geagea
On Friday, February 18, Okaz newspaper published an interview with me About “Shiite politics” And he has a set of pictures of me, including a picture with Geagea. However, the photo circulated by WhatsApp groups was not the photo published by Okaz, but another photo, taken from a file on the Flickr website, entitled “Interviews with Leaders.”
The file contains a set of photos, including clips of me with: Representative Walid Jumblatt, Mr. Khaled Mashaal, Dr. Ramadan Abdullah Shallah, and Mr. Muhammad Hussein Fadlallah. However, the researcher in it, averted his face from all these pictures, and chose the picture of Samir Geagea, because it serves his goal!
What is meant is to say to the “political Shiites” that the one who criticizes you, here he is with Geagea, and whom this audience views with much negativity and contempt.
Hassan Al-Mustafa during a press interview with the head of the political bureau of Hamas, Khaled Meshaal
Personally, my meeting with Samir Geagea was one of the best press interviews I had, and he was frank, lively, and even he personally liked the dialogue at its conclusion.
Defamation!
There are systematic smear campaigns that target any country Critic of “Shiite politics”The fact that its supporters do not accept differences of opinion, nor divergence in viewpoints, and they do not shy away from using forgery and deception in order to achieve their goals, and the moral assassination of those with different readings.
I met Samir Geagea in 2010, and I have no regrets as a journalist on this meeting.
My question to the “Hezbollah” audience, who consider what you have done as “a vice”: Is the meeting of Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah with Dr. Samir Geagea also a sin that should be forgiven, and that the master regrets his action, or is what is permissible for you forbidden for others?!