Lebanon
! What Will Happen After
The Assassination Of General Al Hajj?
By
Dr Salim Nazzal
18 December,
2007
Countercurrents.org
The
35 kilograms of high explosives which were packed into an olive green
BMW and killed General Francois Al Hajj on Friday has invoked great
sentiments of unity among the Lebanese. This was reflected in the Lebanese
media which most of its commentaries emphasized that the murder has
created a feeling of unity among the Lebanese people eager to see their
country finish with the two years of political instability. This was
also obvious in the people's reaction. Along the road from Beirut to
Al Hajj village in the further south, close to the Palestinian border,
and despite the rainy weather, the Lebanese people from all sects and
political stripes gathered to pay their respect to the murdered general,
and to express their condemnation to the assassination which shocked
the country since the target this time was the army which is viewed
in Lebanon as the salvation rock particularly in the current insecure
situation.
Against
the tradition of the lebanese army which is usually neutral towards
the domestic politics the leader of the army staff told the mourners
in Hairsa church in the presence of leaders from both camps, the 8th
and the 14th of March that it is time that the lebanese political leaders
take a "historic stance" and to build "bridges of trust"
between rival parties and achieve reconciliation and consensus rapidly,
without setting pre-conditions.
Indeed, it
is very obvious that the assassination of general al hajj has pushed
more voices towards pressing the politicians to act. The Maronite Christian
cardinal called for an immediate election to the president and the Shia
Muslim scholar think that most political leaders "failed in terms
of strategic vision. It is noteworthy however to mention that the American
and French speeches, which called for an immediate election has seemingly
worried the opposition already skeptical to the American and French
role which is viewed as being biased and not neutral.
A Lebanese
source near to the opposition told me that the opposition strongly shares
the eagerness of the Lebanese to see their country with a president
but he wonders about the reasons behind Sarkozy warning to the Lebanese
that Monday is the last chance for the Lebanese to elect their president.
In his view the Lebanese people are capable, provided they are free
from these pressures and deadlines to find a solution which matches
with the accordance democracy of Lebanon. He also expressed his suspicion
about the sudden visit which US envoy David Welsh paid to Lebanon on
Saturday saying that the Americans could not be more concerned to elect
a Lebanese president than the Lebanese people themselves. The American
envoy echoed Sarkozy in urging the Lebanese to elect a head of state
very soon.
However despite
of the black smokes which appeared after the assassination, many observers
think that the problem now is still as was before focused on the approach
of ending the crisis. In other words which approach must be used to
address the crisis, the gradual approach which means to address the
problems in all sides and to move on solid platform or to be satisfied
in electing the president, leaving the problematic issues to a later
period, or perhaps to find a way to combine both approaches?
Nevertheless,
according to media sources in Lebanon the coming hours can be decisive
towards reaching or none reaching of a solution. Either there will be
a solution which could be a result to a regional and international agreement,
which would be reflected positively on Lebanon or, there would be an
American veto on current efforts which would return the situation before
the Lebanese parties agreed on Suleiman as the future president.
Yet despite the swinging between optimism and pessimism the ever optimistic
leader in Lebanon Nabih Birre has promised the Lebanese good news during
the time when the Lebanese are celebrating the Adha Eid and the Christmas.
Lebanon which is made up basically of Muslim and Christian communities
the accordance of both celebrations is usually seen as an indication
of unity and as a sign of hope towards a brighter future for the country
which long for peace and stability.
Dr.
Salim Nazzal is a Palestinian-Norwegian historian in the Middle
East, who has written extensively on social and political issues in
the region. He can be contacted at: [email protected]
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