Middle East

 Brig. Gen. François al-Hajj, who was on the track to succeed Michel Suleiman as Army chief of staff whenever he becomes president, was killed in a car bomb in Beirut today.   Al-Hajj also led the battle against the Fatah al-Islam militant group in ferocious fighting last summer.   Whether this was a revenge killing or somehow tied to the frustrating and increasingly dangerous political void (or both) is unsure as of now.  Al-Jazeera postulates that this is a “significant unfolding of events because the army was the only military institution that is seen as neutral, and not taking sides in the political crisis in Lebanon.”  Of course, if Suleiman does become President, the line between civilian and military status in Lebanon will become increasingly blurred.

Ad nauseam, ad infinitum.  For the 8th time, the Lebanese parliament has postponed electing a president.   The many factions had agreed on choosing Gen. Michel Suleiman to replace Emil Lahoud, but it has hit many, many snags.  For one, the Lebanese constitution forbids high-ranking state employees from becoming President, so Suleiman will have to resign or the Constitution will have to be amended.  The constitution allows for that, but the opposition parties (notably Hezbollah) are opposed to that.  That link, from the excellent Daily Star, also describes in detail what the postponement is all about- essentially each side trying to get the most out of a comprehensive agreement on the shape of the next government.   For a good look at why things are so chaotic, read the latest entry in Michael Young’s blog.  It is fairly dizzying.  Hassan Naffa has a good article about Lebanon being the testing-ground of the Arab World in last week’s al-Ahram, and how the crisis “is not a constitutional one; it is one of consensus or, more accurately, the lack thereof.”