A new president may finally be chosen. General Michel Suleiman, the commander of the Lebanese army, seems to be assured of occupying the vacant post of president, now that the parliamentary majority has endorsed him as its compromise candidate. However, there are still some thorny issues to settle before the opposition agrees to give its blessing to General Suleiman’s election, and further problems loom large assuming he is eventually installed. The army commander was not among the declared candidates in the weeks running up to the expiry of the mandate of Emile Lahoud on November 24th. However, he had always been considered as the most likely fallback option in the event that the government and the opposition failed to reach a consensus on one of the figures that had put their names forward. The general has carefully fostered an image of political neutrality, although the fact that he was appointed in 1998 during the era of Syrian control over Lebanon has tainted him with the stain of Damascus’s approval in the eyes of some. Full Story
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