BEIRUT, 6 July 2005 — Political and sectarian bickering over Cabinet posts is holding up the formation of Lebanon’s first government since Syrian forces quit the country, political sources said yesterday. Prime Minister-designate Fouad Siniora had been expected to announce a 24-minister lineup this week after he was chosen by all but two members of the newly elected 128-seat Parliament.
However, demands and counterdemands over Cabinet portfolios from his anti-Syrian friends and powerful allies of Damascus have delayed an agreement and thwarted his attempts to form a government from among various groups in Parliament. “There are still several hurdles facing the formation of a new government,” one source said. There has been no official word from Siniora on progress.
Christian leader Michel Aoun, a longtime critic of Damascus who teamed up with pro-Syrian politicians in last month’s elections, has said he will not be represented in the government after his demands for the Justice Ministry were turned down. Aoun leads a 21-member bloc in Parliament, where groups opposed to Syria’s influence are in a majority. His bloc now appears destined to form the backbone of opposition to a Siniora government.
For the first time, the Syrian-backed Hezbollah group, which swept the Shiite vote to win 14 Parliament seats, has chosen to join the Cabinet and asked Siniora for two ministerial posts. While Siniora, a Sunni, had agreed to this, he had so far rejected demands by Hezbollah and allied Shiite Amal group to appoint a Shiite foreign minister, the sources said. They said Siniora wanted to give the portfolio to a Christian ally.
