A serious clash in south Beirut yesterday was stopped by the Lebanese Army after one person was killed, and continued fighting in north Lebanon’s Tripoli has killed at least 27 people as Lebanese supporters and opponents of Syrian President Bashar Al Assad fight the Syrian civil war on Lebanese soil. These tragic deaths across Lebanon during the past week are a dramatic reminder of the weakness of the Lebanese government and its inability to deliver decent security in the country. Tripoli is divided between a majority of Sunnis who back the anti-government forces in Syria, and Alawites who back Al Assad. Tensions created by the fighting in Syria have led both sides to accusing the other of supporting their co-religionists in Syria by supplying weapons and other support.
Despite the chaos of the fighting in the north, the Lebanese parliament finally endorsed a government headed by Prime Minister Tammam Salam, which gives Lebanon its first functioning cabinet in more than a year. This has increased the chances of parliament holding a successful presidential election before the incumbent President Michel Sulaiman’s term expires on May 25. There is a danger that if success seems unlikely, parliament might rush through another constitutional amendment (as has happened before) to extend Sulaiman’s presidential term. Lebanon never managed to fully normalise after its harrowing 15-year civil war ended in 1990, and has struggled to maintain its fragile stability particularly as its largest armed group, Hezbollah, did not disarm and maintains enough political power to block any government moves it does not like, while it is far too weak to lead a government. In addition, the past three years of Syrian civil war has put terrible pressure on Lebanon as fighters and sympathisers of the various factions have sought to bring the war into Lebanon. What has happened this week in Tripoli and Beirut is only one example of what could be happening all over Lebanon if the government does not take action. Salam’s new government and the incoming president both have major challenges to meet, and need all the support they can get to overcome their crisis and restore Lebanon to good governance despite the collapse of Syria.
