Geagea Urges Hizbullah to Emulate Moqtada al-Sadr

Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea on Monday called on Hizbullah, without naming it, to emulate influential Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr, the leader of a militia that fought against U.S. forces in Iraq and later against the Islamic State group.

“I wish those we have in Lebanon would emulate Sayyed Moqtada al-Sadr, who ordered the disbanding of (the) Saraya al-Salam (militia) once the war on IS ended,” Geagea tweeted, in an apparent reference to Hizbullah.

Earlier in the day, al-Sadr had ordered Saraya al-Salam to hand over its weapons to the Iraqi government “as soon as possible,” in a speech marking the end of the anti-IS war.

Geagea's remarks also come a day after the circulation of a video showing alleged members of Saraya al-Salam in south Lebanon.

The date on which the video was filmed is still unclear but its social media spread follows the circulation of a similar video showing the commander of Iran-backed Iraqi group Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Qais al-Khazali, in a tour on the Lebanese-Israeli border.