Lebanon president seen delayed again

BEIRUT - Lebanon's divided parliament is unlikely to hold a session this week to vote on a new president but a move by the majority bloc appeared to boost the chances of a deal, politicians said on Wednesday.

Saad al-Hariri's Future parliamentary bloc said it would back the election of army commander General Michel Suleiman to the presidency in a shift of strategy.

"We declare our acceptance of amending the constitution in order to pave the way for an agreement on army commander General Michel Suleiman," MP Ammar al-Houri of Future bloc told al-Arabiya television.

The bloc had previously opposed the election of Suleiman, who enjoys good ties with Hezbollah. Electing Suleiman would need a constitutional amendment to allow a senior public servant to run for office. He would stand down as army chief.

"This stand rebukes the accusations by some that we caused the vacuum (in the presidency) or that we are trying to extend it," Houri said.

Parliament is due to meet on Friday in another attempt at electing a successor to former President Emile Lahoud, whose term ended last week.

The vote has been postponed five times because leaders of the Western-backed ruling coalition and the opposition, led by Syrian-backed Hezbollah, have been unable to agree on a compromise candidate.

Houri said there was little time for any agreement on Suleiman's candidacy before Friday but things could move relatively quickly towards concluding a deal.

Political sources said lack of agreement meant that opposition MPs would stay away from Friday's session and force another delay. Opposition MPs need to attend the assembly to secure the two-thirds quorum needed for a vote.

"There has been no meaningful talks between the two camps in recent days," a senior political source said. "There will be no session on Friday to allow for the resumption of contacts."

Asked whether there could be an election this week, another source said: "No way."

Prime Minister Fouad Siniora's cabinet assumed the powers of head of state on Saturday after Lahoud's term ended with no deal despite French-led mediation efforts.

The opposition disputes the legitimacy of the anti-Syrian government and says it has no right to assume the powers of president. Siniora urged calm this week and said he would not make any "provocative" moves.

Although there has been no deal on Lahoud's successor, the rivals have not carried out threats of unilateral action, and have contained the worst crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war.

The presidency was last left vacant in 1988-1989. The crisis triggered one of the bloodiest phases in the civil war.