Berri says he masterminded National Moderation bloc's presidential initiative

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri is the mastermind behind the National Moderation bloc's presidential initiative.

"I was behind this initiative," Berri told ad-Diyar newspaper. "How was I accused of obstructing it?"

Berri said, in remarks published Wednesday, that he had asked the bloc not to mention his name and to use the word "consultations" instead of "dialogue", to make sure the initiative wouldn't fail.

When some misinterpreted the initiative, Berri said, he decided to publicly offer to head the meeting and call for the consultations through the Parliament's General Secretariat.

The initiative, launched in February by the National Moderation bloc, calls for consultations in Parliament followed by open electoral sessions.

Berri said he is ready to call for successive sessions, even if these sessions would take a week.

Crisis-hit Lebanon has been without a president since Michel Aoun's term ended in October 2022, with neither of the two main blocs -- Hezbollah and its opponents -- having the majority required to elect one.

The National Moderation bloc had met with Berri and with other parliamentary blocs, including Hezbollah. The group did not give the bloc a positive answer regarding the consultations.