Lebanese government topples as Hezbollah ministers resign

MINISTERS from Hezbollah and its allies have resigned, toppling the Lebanese government of Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri before expected indictments against the Shi’ite group over the killing of Hariri’s father.

Lebanese politicians had said on Tuesday Saudi Arabia and Syria failed to reach a deal to contain tensions over the UN-backed tribunal, which is expected to issue draft indictments soon over the 2005 assassination of Rafik al-Hariri.

The ministers resigned as Saad al-Hariri was meeting US President Barack Obama, and the White House later released a statement criticising Hezbollah’s moves and warning against any “threats or action” that could destabilise Lebanon.

Hariri’s office said he left Washington after the talks, heading for Paris to meet President Nicolas Sarkozy on Thursday.

Sarkozy’s office said the meeting would take place at around 7.15pm tomorrow.

It said Sarkozy discussed the situation in Lebanon with Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad and sent a message of support to Lebanese President Michel Suleiman.

Analysts said the resignations could set the stage for protracted political turmoil in Lebanon.

They played down prospects of a repeat of the violence of May 2008, when gunmen took over Beirut after government moves against Hezbollah.

But Sunni power Saudi Arabia, which backs Hariri, warned the resignations “will cause clashes once again”.

The Shi’ite Hezbollah has denied any role in the 2005 killing. Its leader, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, has attacked the tribunal as an “Israeli project” and urged Hariri to renounce it.

The Sunni Muslim premier has resisted Hezbollah’s demand. Announcing the resignations, Christian government minister Gebran Bassil blamed Washington for obstructing the Saudi-Syrian efforts and called on Lebanon’s president to “take the required steps for forming a new government”.

A stalemate over the tribunal has crippled Hariri’s 14-month-old “unity” government. The cabinet has met just once in the last two months and the government could not secure approval for the 2010 budget.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Lebanon’s coalition crisis was a transparent attempt to subvert justice, but vowed that the work of the UN-backed tribunal would go on.

“This is not only about the tragic assassination of former Prime Minister Hariri, but many other people died and were injured as well,” Clinton told a news conference in Doha, Qatar, where she is attending a meeting of regional leaders.