Inter-Lebanese dialogue resumes
Lebanon-Syria, Politics, 3/22/2006

The Lebanese political forces resume today their national dialogue tours amid increased differences on the priority of the parliamentary majority which stand against Syria in clinging to the need of starting with consideration of impeaching President Emile Lahoud and Hizbullah which opposes the idea of dismantling its weapons.

Certain sides taking part in the dialogue expressed pessimism over the possibility of reaching an agreement in the third round of the dialogue. Under these atmospheres, three mortar shells with two unconnected batteries were found in a bag, 300 meters from the house of the leader of the Lebanese parliamentary majority Saad al-Hariri in Beirut on Monday evening.

Al-Mustaqbal newspaper, which is owned by the Hariri family, considered in this development a message being sent to al-Hariri on the wake of the dialogue, but did not accuse any side of being behind the act. The Lebanese authorities started on Tuesday investigation to this incident.

Hours before convening the new round of dialogue, the Lebanese majority forces accused Syria of obstructing the dialogue. The Lebanese minister Marwan Hamadeh said in press statements that there is an attempt to remove the issue of the removal of the President of the Republic from the agenda and might be to halting the dialogue.

He stressed that the issue of impeaching Lahoud should come first in the new round of dialogue, looming the launching of "a people's campaign" calling for his resignation in case the dialogue fails.

For his part, the secretary general of the Lebanese Hizbullah party Hassan Nasrullah said that the parliamentary majority is unable to shorten the "term of presidency" unless having an agreement with Hizbullah or its allies the Shiite Amal Movement or its alley the Free National Trend led by Michel Aoun.

Nasrullah stressed persistence to continue the dialogue. He welcomed adding two more items: the economy, and the elections law, ignoring the question of impeaching President Lahoud and confined to saying that there is no "bargaining" between the two issue of the weapons of the resistance for the issue of the presidency.

A source in the parliamentary majority considered Nasrullah's position as an attempt "to removing the issue of impeaching Lahoud through expanding the agenda."

Worthy mentioning that participants in the dialogue reached in the first round of talks a consensus on forming a court of an international nature to investigate the assassination of Rafiq al-Hariri and to expand the international investigation so as to include the other assassinations which followed the assassination of al-Hariri on February 14, 2005.

Previous Stories:
  Assafir: mortar shells near Hariri house in Qreitem   (3/21/2006)
  Tishrin: Syrian court wants to question Khaddam   (3/21/2006)
  Sinioura for political and economic reforms, relations with Syria   (3/20/2006)
  Syrian FM receives message from Lebanese counterpart   (3/20/2006)
  Fatah to collect its weapons inside Lebanon's camps   (3/20/2006)
  Senior UN envoy on Lebanon issues starts talks with key Arab leaders   (3/18/2006)
  US government report on Lebanon's human rights   (3/16/2006)

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