THE COLLAPSE of Lebanon’s unity government has plunged the country into a protracted period of uncertainty as its two rival camps jockey for advantage in the contest to form the next government.
President Michel Suleiman has appointed outgoing prime minister Saad al-Hariri as caretaker but his future is unclear. Claiming it can secure a parliamentary majority, the Hizbullah-led opposition, which brought down Mr Hariri’s government on Wednesday, argues that the president must name an alternative for the post of prime minister.
Mr Hariri’s coalition partners hold he is the only possible choice.
Discussions are due to begin on Monday on the formation of a new government. Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, who withdrew his backing for Mr Hariri last year, is the likely kingmaker. His faction commands 10 votes in the 128-member parliament; Mr Hariri’s bloc has 71 and the opposition 57.
The unpredictable Mr Jumblatt said yesterday it was “too early to say what I’ll do. When the consultations on naming the new premier begin, we’ll see.”
The outcome of the contest will also depend on Mr Suleiman’s skill at handling the rival blocs. He is a former army chief determined to avoid violence. During street-fighting in May 2008, it became clear Lebanon’s small, professional army could not contain clashes between gunmen fielded by Mr Hariri and forces allied to Hizbullah.
The issue that precipitated the resignation of 11 ministers from the 30-member cabinet was Mr Hariri’s refusal to renounce the Netherlands-based tribunal expected to indict Hizbullah figures over the 2005 assassination of former prime minister Rafik Hariri, Saad’s father.
Syria was originally blamed for the murder by Mr Hariri and his domestic and western allies but was cleared of the charge. Backed by Syria and Iran, Hizbullah vehemently denies involvement.
The movement argued it had adopted a constitutional means of removing a prime minister who refused to adopt formula proposed by Saudi Arabia and Syria, a compromise that would maintain unity and safeguard Hizbullah’s integrity. Hizbullah insisted that Mr Hariri had bowed to the US, which strongly supports the tribunal.
President Barack Obama stressed the importance of the tribunal’s mission “to end the era of political assassinations with impunity in Lebanon”.
UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon reiterated his backing for the tribunal and insisted it was independent, a contention many Lebanese and Arabs doubt.
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton expressed EU support for a unity government and called on Lebanese to reach a negotiated solution to the crisis.
Arab League chief Amr Moussa urged Lebanese politicians to form a unity government and warned the situation in Lebanon is “threatening”. He called on all parties “to work together in order to reach some kind of compromise”.
However he also said of the murder of Rafik al-Hariri: “There was a crime, the crime should be investigated and the criminals should be punished.”
He observed the tribunal should be “above politics”.
