These generals want to take down Hariri — for different reasons
Al Sayyed despises Hariri for his anti-Syrian stance while Rifi believes he hasn’t gone far enough
When their names were first registered for the upcoming parliamentary elections on May 6, Ashraf Rifi and Jameel Al Sayyed raised eyebrows among Lebanon’s civil society.
The thought of two powerful ex-generals joining the Lebanese parliament was alarming, especially as the last three presidents of the republic have all been officers as well. The two controversial men were tough, seasoned, and tied to foreign powers, with Al Sayyed being an ally of Iran and Rifi to Saudi Arabia.
Rifi, 64, hails from a Sunni family in Tripoli. He was appointed director of Internal Security Forces (ISF) after the resignation of General Ali Al Haj, shortly after the murder of ex-Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in February 2005.
Rifi became exceptionally close to current prime minister Sa’ad Hariri, the son of Rafik.
He retired at the age of 60 in 2014 and served for two years as minister of justice, stepping down in February 2016 in objection to the rising influence of Hezbollah on Lebanese politics.
He has since parted ways with Hariri, furious with his former ally for striking a deal with Hezbollah that restored him to power in late 2016, making Hezbollah’s ally, General Michel Aoun, president. Rifi is now campaigning on “putting an end to corruption” and hoping to bring down the Hariri cabinet, which includes two Hezbollah members.
But “Rifi’s reputation has suffered in the past year or so,” says veteran journalist Nicholas Blanford, who has covered Lebanon for the Christian Science Monitor for years. Speaking to Gulf News, he added: “There was a time when his pictures were going up in places like Arsal and Iqlim Al Kharroub north of Sidon, but today he seems to have gone back to being a Tripoli politician. I don’t see him posing much of a threat to Hariri at present.”
One reason for that is that he hasn’t been able to win the full support of Saudi Arabia yet, which is the traditional patron of Lebanese Sunnis.
The buzz around him seems to have ended shortly after the campaigning started, as he is overshadowed by more enduring and seasoned politicians.
The same goes for Al Sayyed, another hawk from the other side of the political spectrum, running for parliament in alliance with Hezbollah.
Born into a Shiite family in the Bekka Valley in 1950, he became head of military intelligence in the First Brigade of the Lebanese Army during the early stages of the Civil War.
An ostentatious comeback
From 1983-1991, he was the chief intelligence officer in the Bekka and then was charged with the security of President Elias Hraoui until 1998 when Emile Lahhoud appointed him director of General Security — a post traditionally held by a Maronite and not a Shiite. He was exceptionally close to Hezbollah — an alliance that landed him in jail in 2005, where he was accused of the Hariri murder.
Al Sayyed remained in jail until 2009 and was released for lack of evidence.
He subsequently launched an ostentatious comeback that was strongly Syria-backed and proHezbollah.
Like Rifi he too hopes to bring down Sa’ad Hariri, but apart from that the two men agree on practically nothing else.
“These two generals took off their military uniforms and now aspire to enter parliament, which gives them two things: immunity and the chance to remain relevant after military retirement,” said prominent journalist Gassan Hajjar, managing editor of the Beirut daily Al Nahar.
Speaking to Gulf News, he added: “Their influence, however, won’t surpass that of any other parliamentarian, given that their experience is neither civil nor legislative. The parliament and political structure will not allow them to achieve much, but will make them stand out in their different and outstanding positions [on political issues]; but that won’t transform into an achievement.”