ID :
157074
Thu, 01/13/2011 - 13:57
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/157074
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Hariri government falls due to U.S. meddling
TEHRAN, Jan. 13 (MNA) -- Ministers of the March 8 Alliance, whose main parties are Hezbollah, Amal, and the Free Patriotic Movement, have resigned from the Lebanese cabinet, which has toppled the government.
The March 8 Alliance ministers made the decision after the Saudi-Syrian efforts to settle the crisis over the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) reached a deadlock, with all signs pointing to strong U.S. interference to block efforts to resolve the situation.
The Special Tribunal for Lebanon, backed by the United States and Israel, and its impending indictment have caused many divisions and problems at the national level in Lebanon, and the Saudi-Syrian effort was a great step to settle the crisis, but months of give-and-take were in vain, as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton sent a clear message to Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdul-Aziz and Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri saying that the U.S. would reject and would not allow any settlement at the expense of the UN tribunal.
The announcement of the collapse of the Saudi-Syrian initiative followed high-level talks in Washington and New York on the Lebanese crisis involving U.S. President Barack Obama, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Saudi Arabian King Abdullah, Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri, and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The Lebanese crisis was one of the topics discussed by Obama and Sarkozy at the White House on Monday. Sarkozy later traveled to New York where he met separately with the Saudi king and Hariri.
The Lebanese cabinet has been paralyzed for months over political tension over the STL’s impending indictment and the rival factions’ dispute over the issue of witnesses who allegedly misled the UN investigation with false testimony. The cabinet has met only once since November 10, and in its last meeting on December 15, it failed to settle the issue of false witnesses when the March 8 Alliance ministers demanded a vote on referring the issue to the Judicial Council, the country’s highest court, prompting Lebanese President Michel Suleiman to delay the discussions.
State Minister for Administrative Development Mohamad Fneish expressed deep regret Tuesday night over the deadlock the Saudi-Syrian effort has reached “as a result of U.S. pressure.” Fneish was speaking to reporters in Rabieh at the residence of MP Michel Aoun, the leader of the Free Patriotic Movement, following consultations with the opposition. “There was an Arab effort which we dealt with positively. We even bargained on it. However, as a result of U.S. interference and the inability of the other side to deal with it, this effort reached a deadlock,” Fneish said.
Hariri himself told the pan-Arab daily Al-Hayat last Friday that the settlement had been finalized. It is still not clear what Clinton told Hariri, who was scheduled to meet with U.S. President Barack Obama in Washington on Wednesday. According to the Al-Jazeera network, “Reliable sources have said that Clinton openly informed Hariri and King Abdullah that the United States will not accept any solution in Lebanon before the STL indictment is released.”
Saudi Arabia and Syria, the main power brokers in Lebanon backing rival political factions, have been coordinating their efforts since late July to find a solution acceptable to the March 8 and March 14 alliances for Lebanon’s months-long political stalemate over the STL’s impending indictment on the Rafiq Hariri assassination. The indictment is widely expected to implicate some Hezbollah members in the Hariri assassination, heightening concerns about a return to sectarian strife.
The March 8 Alliance ministers made the decision after the Saudi-Syrian efforts to settle the crisis over the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) reached a deadlock, with all signs pointing to strong U.S. interference to block efforts to resolve the situation.
The Special Tribunal for Lebanon, backed by the United States and Israel, and its impending indictment have caused many divisions and problems at the national level in Lebanon, and the Saudi-Syrian effort was a great step to settle the crisis, but months of give-and-take were in vain, as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton sent a clear message to Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdul-Aziz and Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri saying that the U.S. would reject and would not allow any settlement at the expense of the UN tribunal.
The announcement of the collapse of the Saudi-Syrian initiative followed high-level talks in Washington and New York on the Lebanese crisis involving U.S. President Barack Obama, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Saudi Arabian King Abdullah, Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri, and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The Lebanese crisis was one of the topics discussed by Obama and Sarkozy at the White House on Monday. Sarkozy later traveled to New York where he met separately with the Saudi king and Hariri.
The Lebanese cabinet has been paralyzed for months over political tension over the STL’s impending indictment and the rival factions’ dispute over the issue of witnesses who allegedly misled the UN investigation with false testimony. The cabinet has met only once since November 10, and in its last meeting on December 15, it failed to settle the issue of false witnesses when the March 8 Alliance ministers demanded a vote on referring the issue to the Judicial Council, the country’s highest court, prompting Lebanese President Michel Suleiman to delay the discussions.
State Minister for Administrative Development Mohamad Fneish expressed deep regret Tuesday night over the deadlock the Saudi-Syrian effort has reached “as a result of U.S. pressure.” Fneish was speaking to reporters in Rabieh at the residence of MP Michel Aoun, the leader of the Free Patriotic Movement, following consultations with the opposition. “There was an Arab effort which we dealt with positively. We even bargained on it. However, as a result of U.S. interference and the inability of the other side to deal with it, this effort reached a deadlock,” Fneish said.
Hariri himself told the pan-Arab daily Al-Hayat last Friday that the settlement had been finalized. It is still not clear what Clinton told Hariri, who was scheduled to meet with U.S. President Barack Obama in Washington on Wednesday. According to the Al-Jazeera network, “Reliable sources have said that Clinton openly informed Hariri and King Abdullah that the United States will not accept any solution in Lebanon before the STL indictment is released.”
Saudi Arabia and Syria, the main power brokers in Lebanon backing rival political factions, have been coordinating their efforts since late July to find a solution acceptable to the March 8 and March 14 alliances for Lebanon’s months-long political stalemate over the STL’s impending indictment on the Rafiq Hariri assassination. The indictment is widely expected to implicate some Hezbollah members in the Hariri assassination, heightening concerns about a return to sectarian strife.
