Syria and the results of the Lebanese elections

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A senior Syrian source confirmed to Al Mayadeen that the recent Lebanese parliamentary elections witnessed remarkable but not drastic changes and did not cause concern to Damascus.

The source saw that the results of the elections prove that Syria's allies, led by Hezbollah, won a popular majority, which is an element that reassures Damascus of the stability of the popular situation that is in support of Lebanese-Syrian relations.

According to the Syrian source, what harms Syria is that the official and popular perception of Lebanon changes on a large scale against it, which did not happen in the recent elections.

Balance of power is not limited to election results

Commenting on the loss of some of Syria's allies in the elections, the high-ranking source explained to Al Mayadeen that Damascus' position on these political figures is based on three elements; their stance on Syria regardless of their official position in Lebanon, their popular presence regardless of the structure of Lebanese electoral law, and most importantly, the persistence of their stance. Therefore, their loss in the elections did not affect Syria's stance towards them.

Comparing Hezbollah and the Lebanese Forces' electoral gains, the high-ranking source expresses reassurance based on solid conclusions, most notably, the stability of Hezbollah's position, its growing popular base, and the fact that the balance of power in Lebanon is not limited to the results of the elections.

The senior Syrian source indicated that many factors played a role in the electoral progress of the Lebanese Forces party adding that a clear external intervention in Lebanon was able to secure resources to mobilize a popular environment in support of the party.

The huge amount of money that the Lebanese Forces party paid - which does not belong to them - also played a role amid the economic crisis that the country is passing through, the source said.

The source considered that the significant number of seats won by the opponents of the Lebanese forces, especially the Free Patriotic Movement, confirms that the Christian population in Lebanon does not oppose Syria.

Damascus quietly awaiting course of Lebanese political scene

In regard to the number of seats won by the lists of the October 17th movement groups, the source explained that it is too early to assess the model of Lebanese-Syrian relations - which is not determined by the results of the elections - adding that the stances of these new MPs on core issues of concern to Syria - namely the Resistance and hostility to “Israel” - is still pending.

According to the source, Damascus is quietly awaiting the course of the Lebanese political scene. The Syrian authorities are relieved by Hezbollah's statements after the elections and are not worried by the escalatory rhetoric of the Lebanese Forces party.

The Syrian source told Al Mayadeen that if a regional settlement governs the Lebanese scene, Syria knows that this will not be at its expense for two reasons. The first is due to the course of Syrian-Arab relations, which have begun to be active, as well as the stable Syrian-Iranian relationship, with the presence of these two elements in any future settlement for Lebanon.

The second is the popular and field strength of Damascus' allies in Lebanon, which are capable of preventing any Lebanese project against Syria, in case the elections would make any positive or negative change in the country.