Qifa Nabki
Saad Hariri
Walid Goes a-Courtin’
Twitter and the blogosphere are buzzing with news of Walid Jumblatt’s latest about-face, in which he announced at a PSP gathering that his alliance with March 14 “was driven by necessity and must not continue.” Jumblatt further stressed the need “to rethink a new formation that would provide a way out of bias and prevent … Continue reading
Is That a Silver Bullet In Your Pocket…
We’ve entered the third week of deliberations over Lebanon’s next cabinet lineup, and there is no end in sight. Hariri has paid more house calls than a 19th century doctor in typhoid season, and yet for all we know, there isn’t even agreement on the most basic issues, like the number of ministers accorded to … Continue reading
Brotherly Love
Prominent members of Lebanon’s parliamentary majority and opposition have expressed displeasure at the prospect of a Syrian-Saudi effort to determine the composition of Lebanon’s next government. Everyone from Michel Aoun to Walid Jumblatt to Naim Qassem to Amin Gemayel have spoken out against the idea of Saad al-Hariri handing over the reins of power to … Continue reading
Saad al-Hariri Takes the Helm
Four years after his father’s assassination, Saad al-Hariri has been nominated to the premiership. He received the votes of all 71 March 14 MP’s, plus another 12 MP’s from opposition leader Nabih Berri’s bloc (presumably as a quid-pro-quo for Berri’s re-nomination as speaker). While Hizbullah did not lend its support to Hariri’s nomination, one has … Continue reading
Coalition of the Unwilling
I have a short piece over at ForeignPolicy.com‘s “The Argument” blog about the cabinet formation. Here are the first couple of paragraphs, with a link to the rest. Come on back and comment, if you’re so inclined. Coalition of the Unwilling By Elias Muhanna When the March 14 coalition won a parliamentary majority in Lebanon’s … Continue reading
Qifa Nabki 
And the people say…