Anyone know if there was much coverage of this on the Lebanese television, MaMooli? ![]()
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Lebanese vote for anti-Syria alliance
Election’s final stage looks to support son of assassinated prime minister, securing a majority in parliament
BEIRUT, Lebanon - An anti-Syrian alliance led by the son of assassinated former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri appeared to have swept the final round of Lebanon’s legislative elections yesterday, securing a majority in the new parliament.
In the first Lebanese election held in 30 years without the shadow of civil war or Syrian military domination, Saad Hariri’s coalition appeared to have won at least 65 of parliament’s 128 seats. With a majority, Hariri’s alliance would be expected to try to remove the last vestiges of Syrian influence over Lebanon. Its first priorities would be to name a new cabinet and force out the Syrian-backed Lebanese president, Emile Lahoud.
Hariri’s coalition claimed victory last night in the last round of balloting, held in northern Lebanon. The alliance needed to win 21 of the 28 contested seats to secure a majority in parliament. According to preliminary results, the Hariri-led opposition had won at least 25 seats. Final results are expected today.
“We have triumphed in the north,” Walid Jumblatt, another opposition leader, told Lebanese TV, adding that Syria’s allies in the new parliament will be “nothing but a bad minority.”