Hezbollah agrees to join Lebanon unity government
Hariri nominated as prime minister-designate after winning June vote with his anti-Syrian coalition.
By Reuters and Avi Issacharoff Tags: Hezbollah Lebanon election Israel newsLebanon's Prime Minister-designate Saad al-Hariri will announce a new national unity government in the next two days after clinching a deal with the opposition on its make-up, politicians from both sides said on Saturday.
Lebanon has been without a functioning government since Hariri led his coalition, backed by the United States and Saudi Arabia, to victory in a June parliamentary election against Iranian- and Syrian-backed Hezbollah and its allies.
A government acceptable to all main parties is seen as key to maintaining stability in a country facing sectarian and political tensions, as well as a huge debt burden.
"The government is as good as formed," member of parliament Okab Sakr, who is close to Hariri, told New TV station. "It's all about the final touches now and its formation will be completed this weekend."
Other MPs from both camps made similar remarks.
Leaders of the opposition, including Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, agreed to join the proposed government during a meeting on Friday night.
"Participants at the talks have agreed to forge ahead with the formation of the national unity government in accordance with the regulations that were agreed upon during the negotiations that had been conducted," Hezbollah said in a statement after the meeting, held at a secret location.
Political sources said the opposition would officially inform Hariri of its decision and hand him over the names of their proposed ministers.
Lebanese media reported on Saturday that it was Iran's approval which paved the way for Hezbollah to join Hariri' cabinet, one which Tehran had refused to give in past talks.
It was also reported that a recent visit by the Syrian foreign minister to the Islamic Republic centered around Hezbollah's joining a Lebanese unity government.
Breakthrough deal
Hariri has spent more than four months trying to broker a deal with the opposition to join a unity cabinet. A warming of ties between the two sides' main backers Syria and Saudi Arabia in recent weeks helped ease the rift in Beirut and led eventually to the breakthrough.
The rival factions had agreed in July on the broad division of seats in the new cabinet. But Hariri, son of assassinated billionaire statesman Rafik al-Hariri, had struggled to reach agreement with opposition politicians on the details.
At the heart of the dispute were the demands of Christian leader Michel Aoun, an ally of Hezbollah. Aoun's Free Patriotic Movement holds more seats in parliament than any other Christian party.
The new 30-minister cabinet is set to include 15 ministers from Hariri's coalition, 10 from the opposition including two Hezbollah ministers, and five, including the key interior and defence portfolios, will be nominated by President Michel Suleiman.
Incumbents Ziad Baroud and Elias al-Murr, loyal to the president, are set to keep their interior and defence portfolios, while new foreign and finance ministers are expected to be named.
Hariri had named Raya Hassan for finance minister, responsible for managing Lebanon's public debt burden, in an earlier proposal that was rejected by the opposition.
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, the main Shi'ite Muslim ally of Hezbollah, is set to name the new foreign minister who was likely to be retired university professor Ali al-Shami, the sources said.
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Hariri should first check the fine print drafted by Nasrallah for his new national unity government support to see if Lebanon's lofty Prime Minister will still be considered unworthy to enter Hezbollah's Forbidden City 2 (when rebuilt) whereas any lowly Iranian Revolutionary Guard commander without even proper travel documents to enter the country will be a most welcome guest there amongst the large celebratory murals of Khomeini & Khameini. Nasrallah is now actually going to publicly and emotionally wrap himself and his movement in the Lebanese flag and become cedar tree huggers while retiring his former usurping flag of sedition and lower its symbolic assault rifle? A rhetorical question considering Nasrallah's ongoing rhetoric against Israel.
while israel is stuggling to be recognised as a country for jews! lebanon is a multi cultural and multi religious society. if lebanon is a joke of a democracy, israel is its anti these, and the joke is on you mon ami maurice.
last time israelis declared war on lebanon, they were taught a lesson. lebanese know very well who their enemy is, and they are not intimidated by its military might, not by its criminal mind. salam.
Next time any agression from Lebanon originates or arms are smuggled Israel should declare war on Lebanon and teach it a lesson. The Lebanese have to choose who is their enemy Islamic extremism or Israel/Jews?
Harriri has managed to hammer together a coalition using the traditional formula for apportioning cabinet positions. Hamas wanted more than it got.
Live in the present KKK! There will be no peace if each side throw accusation of after accusation. Egypt and Jordan made peace and now it should be the turn of Lebanon and Syria. Continuing the old cry of destroy Israel only brings self inflicted flagellation!
You got nerve to advocate such nonesense. There is a limit to lies and conspiracy theories. The range of the Gazan rockets were more than 3km as everyone knows. They went all the way up to Ashkelon, and they could go even further. We know now that hamas has even rockets that can reach Tel-Aviv. When Israel's kids were terrorized in their schools at Shderot you have the hutzpah to claim that the reason Israel attacked Gaza was political! Duh! You should be ashamed.
Gaza was attacked because it was defenceless and Livni Barak and Olmeert wanted to increase their share of the opinion polls. Everything else is just an excuse for the deaths of 400 children. The simple fact is IUsrael is whinging about Hezbollah is because they do not want a strong Lebanon able to stop the advance of the IDF in the next war driven by the electioneering style of Israel, and the fact Israel will never again be allowed to undertake another Cast Lead. The bottle rockets from Gaza were just an excuse and you know it. All Israel had to do was drive three kilometres over the border then park their tanks and they were out of range of Israel.
CL:"Which is why Olmert attacked Gaza rather than Lebanon and then declared Israel`s detterence restored." What an absurd statement. Where do you get this stuff from? Chris Gaza was attacked in order to stop the missiles that emanated from there. Lebanon was left alone because there were no problems on that front.
...now we are about where we were before the last attack on poor old Lebanon. Without Israel government policies there would be no Hezbollah and a far stronger Lebanese Army.
A country with two armies! One belonging to a terrorist organization recognized as such by the US and the EU. Even if Hezbo is now part of the government no democratic country would allow two distinct armies.
Is it the Ship or the Iranian riots that have Hizballah surrendering to the pressures. One just wonder, as the sign of the inpending disberement of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Remember the last days of the Sha's regime, and the merchants revolting together with the students: its the same now. It looks also that Syria is trying to unload Iranian influence as a result of the 2007 attack, the budgeting problem in light of the dismall Syrian economy, and the Iraki threat to Syria that if there is no stopping of the Islamists inflitration to killing Irakians, Bagada wil stop the flow of oil. Now, no matter the reasons for Hizballah surrender, it is a valuable changes that will benefit not only Lebanon, but Northern Israel as well, as the room of manoeuvering for Hizballa is getting claustophobic.
Part of the reason for Israel's illegal overflights is to entice Hezbollah to turn on the radar of the anti aircraft systems they have acquired since Lebanon 2. Which is why Olmert attacked Gaza rather than Lebanon and then declared Israel's detterence restored. He knew HAMAS had no anti aircraft capability.
you say: Things become clearer for Israel? Very funny. You talk as if Israeli government & IDF?no generalization to all Israelis-- has never held the innocent Lebanese people accountable for Hezbollah actions, or the Palestinian civilians for that matter. Let me freshen up your memory: the Deir Yassin massacre, the Qana massacre, the Israeli tight surroundings of Sabra & Shattela camps making sure children and women could not escape the camps while they knew exactly what was going on in there? shall I carry on.
Israel must weaken Hezbollah before it can bomb Iran. Without a good air defense system Lebanon will be bombed in the the stone age or navy artillery could be used but with greater risk.
backed by the United states. Does that mean hezbollah isn't a terrorist organisation anymore then?
It will be interesting to know the terms of the agreement. Hopefully it will include Hezbollah integrating its military infrastructure with the Lebanese army. This way Israel can hold the Lebanese government accountable for any military actions against Israel. If not, it will show that the Lebanese government sanctions Hezbollah's militia and its motivations. So, either way things become clearer for Israel and Lebanon's crediblity is firmly on the line.