Hezbollah turning to undemocratic means: Geagea

[oberliner]

BEIRUT: Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea accused Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah Monday of launching an “elimination war” against caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri.

“You say that designating a prime minister nominated by the opposition does not undermine the position of the Sunni sect, but how can it not, when you launch an elimination war against a figure that represents 70 or 80 percent of the Sunni sect?” Geagea wrote in an open letter to Nasrallah, in response to remarks made by the Hezbollah leader Sunday.

Geagea accused Hezbollah of resorting to undemocratic means to influence parliamentary deliberations to choose a prime minister.

“What peaceful democratic process are you talking about? Is the fanning out of Hezbollah groups last Tuesday in the neighborhoods of Beirut in line with the peaceful and regular democratic process?” Geagea asked. “Is the swift change in choices that the Socialist Party has undergone also in line with the peaceful and regular democratic process that you talk about?”

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=2&article_id=124109#ixzz1C4GAN9Mi

[bemildred]

1. Former Lebanon President: Syria wants Egypt out of Lebanese politics

Syria is working hard to keep Egypt out of the political settlement process in Lebanon after the fall of Lebanon's Saad Hariri's government, former President of Lebanon Amine Gemayel said in an interview with Al-Masry Al-Youm.

Gemayel held Syria responsible for the failure of Syrian-Saudi mediation efforts to resolve the disagreements between Lebanon's opposition and government over the international tribunal probing the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

Gemayel said Syria is biased in favor of the opposition since Syria shares interests with Lebanon’s opposition.

He also said armed confrontations in Lebanon will likely follow the withdrawal of Hezbollah's government members and the subsequent collapse of the government, adding that the deployment of Hezbollah's soldiers on 18 January sent a clear message to the people to either choose Hezbollah’s nominee or else risk wide-scale destruction in the country.

http://www.almasryalyoum.com/en/news/former-lebanon-president-syria-wants-egypt-out-lebanese-politics

[Alamuti Lotus]

2. They should use a car-bomb instead; that would get Gaegea's beaming approval