After Lebanon’s parliament failed to elect a new president for the 11th time on Thursday, several deputies decided to stage a sit-in, with lawmakers Melhem Khalaf and Najat Saliba leading the protest.
Later, lawmakers Firas Hamdan and Cynthia Zarazir joined the sit-in at parliament.
The move was supported by a number of opposition deputies, including the Lebanese Kataeb party, whose head, MP Sami Gemayel, said: “We are studying the move and we may join it at any time.”
Contacts began with other deputies and blocs with the aim of expanding the circle of participation.
“My constitutional responsibility, and in compliance with what the articles of the constitution impose on me, I will remain inside the parliament hall with deputy Najat Saliba, and we will not leave it until the session is kept open for successive sessions to elect a president and save democracy,” said Khalaf in his address to parliamentarians.
This is in protest to the failure to elect a president for the 11th time in almost 3 months. Lebanon has been without a president since Michel Aoun’s tenure ended on October, 30, 2022.
In a press conference from inside the parliament, Khalaf said that the parliament should be holding nonstop sessions until the president is elected.
Khalaf and Saliba decided to stay in parliament hall in the dark with the electricity turned off in the afternoon, while a few deputies were keen to stay with them to support them and secure what they needed.
Among the deputies who stayed behind to support Khalaf and Saliba was MP Wadah al-Sadiq.
“There is great support for the decision to sit-in in the parliament, and what we demand is nothing but the implementation of the constitution, which stipulates keeping the election sessions open,” al-Sadiq told Asharq Al-Awsat.
“The tense political situation in Lebanon needs a different initiative, and what we are working on today is to communicate with the blocs to secure the broadest participation,” he added.
