Last update - 00:00 24/11/2007
Lebanon PM: No state of emergency, gov't will assume pres. powers
By The Associated Press
Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora assured Lebanese on Saturday there was no cause for alarm and said his cabinet was assuming executive powers in the absence of a president for the first time in nine years.
In his first comments since President Emile Lahoud's term came to an end without a successor, Siniora defended his government, saying it will continue to function according to the constitution.
"Our main goal in the coming stage, which we hope will not take longer than few days, will be to exert all possible efforts ... to end this situation as soon as possible," Siniora said.
He spoke after a meeting with Cardinal Nasrallah Sfeir, the head of the influential Maronite Catholic Church Saturday. Under Lebanon's division of power, the presidency is held by a Maronite, and mediators have sought Sfeir's help in finding a figure for the presidency who would be acceptable to all sides.
Siniora dismissed a declaration by Lahoud before departing the presidential palace at midnight Friday in which he handed over security powers to the army, saying the country is in a state of emergency.
"There is no state of emergency, and there is no need for that. The army is doing its part in tandem with the other security forces," he said. "There is absolutely no need for any Lebanese to be concerned about the security situation, the army is doing its work and is in full control of the situation on the ground he said."
The capital was calm and shops opened for business Saturday as the country awoke without a president, following a tumultuous day that intensified fears of street violence between supporters of Siniora's pro-Western government and the pro-Syrian opposition led by the Shiite militant group Hezbollah.
"Lahoud's term ends in a republic without a president," read the headline of Lebanon's leading An-Nahar newspaper. Another daily, Al-Balad, printed an empty photo frame on its front page, symbolizing the political vacuum.
A right wing pro-government Christian leader, Samir Geagea, accused Hezbollah, backed by Syria, of obstructing the Lebanese election. "We will not let Syria control again Lebanese politics no matter what happens," he warned at a press conference.
The departure of Lahoud, a staunch ally of the Syrian regime during his nine years in office, was a long-sought goal of the government installed by parliament's anti-Syria majority, which has been trying to put one of its own in the presidency.
Hezbollah and other opposition groups have blocked legislators from electing a new president by boycotting ballot sessions, leaving parliament without the required quorum.
The fight has put Lebanon into dangerous, unknown territory: Both sides are locked in bitter recriminations, accusing the other of breaking the constitution, and they are nowhere near a compromise on a candidate to become head of state.
In the absence of a president, Siniora's government, which the opposition considers to be illegal, takes executive power under the constitution.
Siniora sought to ease Christian concerns at having their top position in the government vacant, saying nobody can take the place of the president.
"This government ... does not wish to have any extra authorities or to prolong this situation one minute," he said.
Opposition politician Michel Aoun, warned against the cabinet taking over the role of the presidency - an exclusively Maronite position - and on Saturday invited fellow Christian leaders to his home to discuss the situation.
The army command, meanwhile, has refused to comment on the developments. The military, under its widely respected chief, Gen. Michel Suleiman, has sought to remain neutral in the political chaos.
"We have been in control of the security situation for months and we continue to do so," said a senior army officer, who declined to discuss the situation further aside from saying that nothing had changed in the past 24 hours.
Even before the president's vague announcement, the military was in place to guard against the two sides' supporters taking the conflict to the streets. On alert for days, hundreds of soldiers stood with tanks, armored personnel carriers and jeeps on street intersections and some roads leading into Beirut.
The anti-Syria camp has sought to capture the presidency to seal the end of Syria dominance of Lebanon, which lasted for 29 years until international pressure and mass protests forced Damascus to withdraw Syrian troops in 2005.
Hezbollah, which is an ally of Syria and Iran, and its opposition allies have been able to stymie the government's hopes by boycotting parliament, as they did Friday afternoon.
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, who is aligned with the opposition, scheduled another session for November 30 to give the factions more time to try to find a compromise candidate.