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Michel Suleiman Sworn in as President of Lebanon (A Christian no less! )
Los Angeles Times ^ | May 25, 2008 | Borzou Daragahi

Posted on 05/25/2008 2:20:53 PM PDT by kellynla

BEIRUT -- Backed by most of Lebanon's major communities and their international patrons, former army chief of staff Michel Suleiman ascended to the presidency of this volatile Mediterranean country today. The 60-year-old Maronite Christian general took the oath of office amid high hopes that he would help heal the country's festering political rift between the U.S. and Saudi-backed government and the opposition, led by Hezbollah, the Iranian and Syrian-backed Shiite militant and political movement.

Suleiman's election by lawmakers, viewed as a temporary fix to a months-long political crisis, came days after Hezbollah gunmen stormed West Beirut and subsequently won an agreement that it remain armed and have enough Cabinet seats to veto major government decisions.

Many hope, however, that Suleiman, with strong ties both to Hezbollah and the support of the Western-leaning March 14 movement, will be able to pull the country together.

Fierce bursts of celebratory gunfire and canons erupted throughout the capital after the parliamentary vote and fireworks filled the night sky.

"I call on you all, political forces and citizens, to build a Lebanon we all agree on, setting the interests of Lebanon above our individual interests," he told lawmakers and assembled dignitaries in a televised address. "We paid a dear price for our national unity. Let's preserve it."

Present in the parliamentary chamber were officials representing all the major foreign powers that have tried to resolve the crisis, including a delegation of U.S. lawmakers and the foreign ministers of Iran, Syria, Saudi Arabia and France. All consider Lebanon part of their cultural, economic and political sphere of influence.

(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...


TOPICS: Extended News; Foreign Affairs; Government
KEYWORDS: lebanon

1 posted on 05/25/2008 2:20:54 PM PDT by kellynla
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To: Salvation; NYer; narses

ping


2 posted on 05/25/2008 2:21:44 PM PDT by kellynla (Freedom of speech makes it easier to spot the idiots! Semper Fi!)
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To: kellynla
Lebanon's President is always a Christian:

Under Lebanon's sectarian power-sharing system, the country's president must be from the Maronite Christian minority.

The post of prime minister is always reserved for a Sunni Muslim, while that of parliament speaker goes to a Shia.

3 posted on 05/25/2008 2:27:21 PM PDT by Dawnsblood
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To: Dawnsblood
Dawnsblood says: “Lebanon's President is always a Christian.....Under Lebanon's sectarian power-sharing system, the country's president must be from the Maronite Christian minority.”

Good catch.

I had no idea.

4 posted on 05/25/2008 2:34:08 PM PDT by zeestephen
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To: kellynla

Hizballah, Iran, and Syria, have they wanted from Lebanon’s government: its surrender of sovereignty. They have veto power over the government; one-third of the countrys’ cabinet is theirs; election changes to ensure victory in the next balloting have been achieved; they will have their candidate installed as president.

That Suleiman is a Christian is a surprise, but it should be recalled that Tariq Aziz, Saddams’ foreign minister, on trial currently in Iraq, is a Christian. Dhimmi Christians have been used for centuries by Islamists...do not get your hopes up.

In what way will the country be pulled together? It has already come under Irans’ umbrella and is conquered. For the Middle East, it is 1938 and Czechoslovakia all over again with exclamation points.


5 posted on 05/25/2008 2:37:46 PM PDT by givemELL
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To: Dawnsblood

Thanks for the Maronite Christian connection, to bad I did not note it before I made my post.


6 posted on 05/25/2008 2:39:36 PM PDT by givemELL
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To: zeestephen
The French are the ones to thank (or not) for the way Lebanon is governed. Under the Mandate, they really helped shape the country. The history of it all is really interesting.
7 posted on 05/25/2008 2:41:43 PM PDT by Dawnsblood
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To: kellynla

Altering the Title to add this “(A Christian no less! )” is incredibly foolish, sublimely ridiculous, and makes FR look like a bunch of rubes.

ut htanks for posting the article, been waiting on news of the Lebanese meeting today.


8 posted on 05/25/2008 3:33:51 PM PDT by JerseyHighlander
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To: JerseyHighlander

“Altering the Title to add this “(A Christian no less! )” is incredibly foolish, sublimely ridiculous, and makes FR look like a bunch of rubes?”

If you have a beef, address the management...
don’t bother me with your whining.


9 posted on 05/25/2008 3:42:42 PM PDT by kellynla (Freedom of speech makes it easier to spot the idiots! Semper Fi!)
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To: Dawnsblood

“Under Lebanon’s sectarian power-sharing system, the country’s president must be from the Maronite Christian minority”

I know. I read & posted the article.

My point, was that they actually followed the rule considering

“The agreement swept under the rug what many analysts consider the underlying causes of Lebanon’s strife, including a rising Shiite population and political clout and a power sharing system that bolsters the power of community leaders over national interests.

It also failed to mention Hezbollah’s status as an armed political force sometimes overshadowing the power of the Lebanese state in its stated mission to confront Israeli and U.S. supremacy over the region.”

It was a pleasant surprise.


10 posted on 05/25/2008 3:52:57 PM PDT by kellynla (Freedom of speech makes it easier to spot the idiots! Semper Fi!)
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To: Dawnsblood
Dawnsblood - excellent Lebanon link - straight forward history, no political emotion - I am reading a WWI history at the moment, and just finished the section on Gallipoli, which was the Turkish peninsula invaded by the Brits and ANZACs in 1915 - had to digest a huge amount of Ottoman history in the Balkans which I was completely ignorant of - quite surprising to learn that Lebanon got its independence one year BEFORE the USA invaded North Africa - never would have guessed that
11 posted on 05/25/2008 9:45:22 PM PDT by zeestephen
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To: zeestephen

Glad to help :)


12 posted on 05/26/2008 12:05:59 AM PDT by Dawnsblood
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To: zeestephen; Dawnsblood; kellynla
The thing that would be surprising to most Americans is the extent of the spread of Christianity (and Judaiism) in non-Western parts of the world.

For instance, Lebanon was 70% christian (Maronite Catholic) at the time of it's independence, this has gone down to about 40% now mainly due to migration (tons of good Lebanese people in South America and North America), the rest being a mixture of Muslims (Sunnis, Shias, Ismailis) and groups that though classified as Muslims, aren't truly Muslims -- like druze (who consider one Egyptian, Abbasid Caliph as being divine) or Allawis (who consider Muhammed as one of a strange trinity -- like a mix of Christianity, Gnosticism and Islam)

Then, Syria is 10% Christian and has a large Alawite, Druze, Ismaili etc. community along with the majority, 74% Sunni Muslims.

Then, Egypt is 2% Christian as was Iraq until the II Gulf war.

Pakistan is also 1% Christian, while India has over 30 million Christians with 2 Baptist majority states. The number of Christians in China is guessed at 150 + million. Ditto for Muslim majority Indonesia which has areas like the Moloccas that are majority Christian.
13 posted on 05/26/2008 12:53:05 AM PDT by Cronos ("Islam isn't in America to be equal to any other faith, but to become dominant" - Omar Ahmed, CAIR)
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To: kellynla

14 posted on 05/26/2008 12:55:32 AM PDT by Lancey Howard
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