Suleiman Hinges on Foreign Support for Successful National Dialogue
President Michel Suleiman is hinging on foreign support to guarantee the success of the national dialogue set to be held on Thursday at the Baabda Palace, the Kuwaiti al-Rai newspaper reported.
Sources told the newspaper published on Monday that the March 14 opposition is expected to attend the all-party talks to express its support to Suleiman's recent stances.
Top western leaders, including French President Francois Hollande, have recently expressed support for Suleiman's calls for the national dialogue.
The sources said the opposition will separate between its decision to boycott the dialogue and all political activity linked to the government until the cabinet of Prime Minister Najib Miqati steps down.
However, the March 14 coalition previously stressed that it will not attend the dialogue session before the government resigns, demanding the formation of a neutral salvation cabinet as the only way to defuse the tension in the country.
The last round of national dialogue was held on September 20 at the Baabda Palace.
The assassination of Internal Security Forces Intelligence Bureau head Brig. Gen. Wissam al-Hasan on October 19 has raised fears about unrest in the country, which is divided between supporters and opponents of Syrian President Bashar Assad, whose country supervised its small neighbor for nearly 30 years.
The Ashrafiyeh bombing in Beirut deepened the gap between the March 14 alliance and the March 8 coalition, which says that there's no alternative for the current cabinet but through the formation of a unity government.
Source: Agence France Presse
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