A few comments from former Ambassador to Lebanon Jeffrey Feltman

The structural coherance of the oppostion has puzzled and frustrated US policymakers. This is because they insist on viewing the situation as one in which parties are pawns of external powers. If you want to understand, you need to ask why the general has continued to attract Christian support, esp. among better educated Christians. The answer lies, in part at least, with the ineffectual, unresponsive and corrupt political system, which stifles upward mobility and rewards sychophancy.

"Feltman said that the US Embassy in Beirut had not lost contact with Christian opposition leader and head of the Free Patriotic Movement MP Michel Aoun. "Yet, we still cannot understand why he is accepting being used as a cover for Syria and Iran's allies in Lebanon," he added.
"Feltman said he wished Aoun had used his powers as a lawmaker to bring life back to the Parliament.
""General Aoun should have resorted to the Parliament to solve his differences with the ruling coalition rather than take to the street," he said. "

Presidential jockeying in Lebanon

Naharnet News Desk

In this interview, M. Raad, head of Hezbollah's bloc in parliament, refers to the party's precious ally Maronite Michel Aoun:

Raad said Hizbullah's presidential candidate is Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun "or whoever is chosen by Gen. Aoun."

"It will be difficult to agree on any candidate of whom Gen. Aoun is not convinced," Raad added, stressing that Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri "realizes this."

Meanwhile, Aoun is still trying to preserve his presidential prospects by attempting to limit the term of the next president to two years, which is most unlikely to attract majority support.