European Forum

Lebanese government collapses

On the 12th of January, Lebanon was plunged deeper into political turmoil after the collapse of the country’s unity government. The collapse was the result of the resignation of the Hezbollah movement and its political allies over arguments stemming from a UN investigation into the assassination in 2005 of Rafiq al-Hariri, the former Lebanese prime minister.

Ten ministers announced their resignation in a statement after President Michel Sleiman and Prime Minister Saad Hariri, son of the assassinated leader, had failed to meet the demand for an immediate cabinet session to discuss the issues surrounding the UN backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL).

An eleventh member, Adnan Sayyed Hussein, later stood down from the 30-member cabinet. Under the Constitution, the resignation of one-third plus one of Cabinet members automatically leads to the collapse of the 30-member government.

The resignations came as Hariri was meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama at the White House in Washington to discuss the Lebanese crisis over the STL. Hariri did not speak to reporters after his talk with Obama but he did cut his trip to Washington short.

According to Lebanon’s national news agency, Sleiman asked Hariri today (13th of January)  to remain as a caretaker prime minister until the country’s political crisis is resolved. Sleiman's announcement comes as Hariri prepares to return to Lebanon to confront the collapsed government.

Growing political tension
The political tensions in Lebanon have increased in the last months, as the STL is widely expected to connect some Hezbollah members to Hariri’s killing. Hezbollah members are saying that this tribunal has been politicised and used by the U.S. and Israel to discredit Hezbollah. For this reason they wanted Hariri to reject any findings by the court even before it announced any indictments.

The resignation of the ministers came one day after Saudi Arabia and Syria, who have for months been attempting to act as mediators, announced that they failed to break the country’s political stalemate.

International reactions
Regional and world leaders expressed deep concerns over the dramatic developments. Hillary Clinton, the U.S. secretary of state, said the tribunal must continue with its work so that justice can be served.

"We view what happened today as a transparent effort by those forces inside Lebanon, as well as interests outside Lebanon, to subvert justice and undermine Lebanon's stability and progress," Clinton told a news conference in Qatar, where she was attending a meeting of regional leaders.

A spokesperson for the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, stated that: "The secretary general is monitoring closely developments in Lebanon, where the situation is fast evolving. He emphasises the importance that calm be preserved.

The events in Lebanon have sparked fears of sectarian violence similar to the one that brought the country close to civil war in 2008.

Sources: Al Jazeera; Ya Libnan