BEIRUT, 31 March 2005 — In the face of a widely anticipated announcement to quit, Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Omar Karami postponed abandoning his bid to form a new Cabinet yesterday saying he will quit after consultations with his political allies.
About 2,500 people chanted “Death to America!” in a demonstration near the US Embassy. The protesters, many belonging to the pro-Iranian militant group Hezbollah, said Washington should stay out of Lebanese affairs — a reference to President George W. Bush’s push for Syria to withdraw all its troops and intelligence agents from Lebanon.
Karami’s announcement came a day after Syria promised for the first time to withdraw its troops completely before Lebanon’s general elections, which are due to begin late next month. The anti-Syrian opposition has accused the authorities of stalling, saying they want neither a new Cabinet nor parliamentary elections.
Speaking after talks with President Emile Lahoud, Karami said: “I made a promise that if I reach a dead end, I will go back to Ein Tineh gathering (of pro-government factions). And I have informed the president that after Ein Tineh’s meeting, I will call his excellency to officially inform him of my decision to step down.”
Karami’s intention to bow out followed a deadlock over forming the government, which must be completed before parliamentary elections can be held. Elections must be held before the May 31 expiry of the current legislature’s mandate, and the opposition — which is expected to win them — is eager to see them held on time.
“It’s clear they don’t want a new Cabinet and they don’t want elections,” said prominent opposition member Nayla Mouawad, widow of President Rene Mouawad, who was slain in a 1989 car bombing. She added that if Karami starts stalling “he will be the loser.”
Lebanon has been in a political crisis since the Feb. 14 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. His death in a bomb blast — which the opposition blamed on Syria and its allies in Lebanon — prompted giant street protests that forced the government at the time, led by Karami, to resign on Feb. 28.
Syria and the Lebanese government have denied any role in the killing. In a slap to the opposition, pro-Syrian Lahoud brought back Karami to form a new government on March 10.
Karami sought to form a national unity government including opposition members because he maintained the conditions in the country required all parties to shoulder their responsibility. But critics said that aimed only to give legitimacy to a Cabinet that would still be dominated by Syria’s allies — and that Karami was proposing it only to hold up the process and delay elections that the leadership fears it will lose.
If Karami does step down, he remains at the top of a caretaker Cabinet indefinitely until a new government is in place. But the business of forming a government goes back to square one. The president will have to poll legislators on whom to appoint as prime minister designate, the nominee will have to conduct a new round of negotiations on the Cabinet’s composition, and the Parliament will have to approve the government.
There is also the risk that Karami will not formally say he is bowing out, a move that would shortchange the process of even designating a new premier. The new government’s priority will be to steer an electoral law through Parliament and oversee the election process.
Deputy Parliament Speaker Michel Murr said organizing an election would take more than a month.
On Tuesday, Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk Sharaa promised in a letter to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and the Security Council that Syria would withdraw all troops from Lebanon before the elections, but he didn’t mention the UN-demanded pullout of its intelligence operatives.
In Damascus, however, Syrian officials have said the withdrawal would include military intelligence personnel.
— With input from agencies
