The recent U.S. sanctions that targeted the leader of the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) Gebran Bassil led to the discovery of whom Bassil referred to as a traitor within the ranks of the party.
What followed was a heated battle of statements between Bassil and the unnamed “Judas,” who was labeled as such for the treason he was accused of committing.
“Judas” was later said to be Tony Haddad, a former advisor to Lebanese President Michel Aoun for public relations, and one of the “first-generation” FPM members.
The Bassil-Haddad clash that ensued was reminiscent of a prediction that Michel Hayek had made about the FPM.
During his 2019 forecast, Hayek said: “An Aounist figure dares to stab the Aounist era,” hinting at a betrayal in the FPM.
Haddad, who holds U.S. citizenship, was accused of being involved in getting Bassil blacklisted by the U.S. Treasury.
In his defense, Haddad said that he was surprised by the accusations.
“I found myself in a storm that I do not need and do not want to be in,” he said in a TV appearance, discussing a dispute that recently surfaced between him and Bassil over Lebanon’s ongoing border demarcation talks with Israel.
“Bassil is unable to work with people who don’t say ‘yes sir’ to him,” Haddad added and revealed that he had been telling President Michel Aoun that “his team, formed 15 years ago, has failed.”
