The pro-west March 14 Alliance apparently won the Lebanese elections against the pro-Syrian coalition that includes the Hizbullah party, according to an election official in Beirut. He stated that the incumbent pro-western party would maintain its parliamentary power. According to latest electoral counts, the March 14 Alliance party, led by the Sunni Moslem Future Movement faction headed by Saad el-Hariri, will receive 69 parliamentary seats while the Hizbullah-led coalition will receive only 52 seats.
Hizbullah is considered a terrorist organization by Israel and the United States. Iran and Syria have provided weaponry to the group, which fired missiles into northern Israel in summer 2006.
“Congratulations to Lebanon, congratulations to democracy, congratulations to freedom,” el-Hariri said in a victory speech from his home. Anti-Syrian prime minister Fouad Siniora, a member of Saad el-Hariri’s camp, gave his blessings to Lebanon in an NBC broadcast. Siniora stated that it’s too early to know whether a unity government will be formed and the Lebanese citizens will have to wait for the official election results. Samir Geagea, president of the Lebanese Forces party which is part of the March 14 Alliance, expects that the pro-west party has won by a landslide victory.
The majority head in the outgoing parliament, Saad Hariri, expects victory by a large margin.
Meanwhile, Hizbullah concedes defeat. “We have lost the election,” an election official close to Hizbullah stated. “We accept the result as the will of the people.”
The election outcome is a blow to Syria and Iran, Hizbullah’s supporters. However, political analyst Dr. Mordechai Keidar told Arutz-7 Television that even a one-third minority could rule in Lebanon. When asked whether the election results will lesson tensions along Israel’s northern border, Dr. Keidar responded, “The situation hasn’t changed, since Hizbullah has the weapons.”
Walid Jumblatt of the Druze Progressive Socialist faction of the March 14 alliance said that Hizbullah and its partners should be included in the Lebanese government. “We should not forget that the elections should be a boost to the dialogue and we should not try to isolate the other parties,” Jumblatt said. Hizbullah has repeatedly called for joining a coalition government.