Lebanon Extends Term of Leader Imposed by Syria

Lebanon’s Parliament yesterday amended the country’s constitution to extend pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud’s term in office by three years, turning its back on UN calls to hold an election to choose the head-of-state.
The result, secured after Lahoud supporters mustered more than the two-thirds of votes needed, had been expected since neighbouring Syria, the main power broker in Lebanon, has been asserting Lahoud’s bid to extend his six-year term, which was due to expire Nov. 24.
One night earlier, the UN Security Council approved a resolution aimed at pressuring Lebanon to reject a second term for Lahoud and calling for an immediate withdrawal of all its foreign forces – an indirect reference to Syrian troops.
Syria has dominated Lebanon for decades and currently has about 20,000 troops stationed in the country. The US State Department accused Syria yesterday of threatening members of Lebanon’s parliament to force the enactment.“We are gravely concerned that the will of the Lebanese people has been circumvented,” said Tom Kasey, a department spokesman. "Syria and its agents threatened the legislators to secure passage, " Kasey added, “making this a crude mockery of democratic principles.”