A few days ago, Lebanon commemorated the 38th anniversary of the outbreak of the civil war that began on April 13, 1975. Remarkably, the occasion was acknowledged in the absence of a government and, to an extent, a parliament. Some predict that Lebanon is headed toward a presidential election crisis in May 2014 unless a recent initiative by Saudi Arabia succeeds. Is there really such an initiative, however?
Since the resignation of Prime Minister Najib Mikati on March 22, there has been talk of a Saudi effort to reconcile rival Lebanese forces. The Saudis were reportedly among the international actors who encouraged or perhaps asked Mikati to step aside. Also, Saudi Arabia had a clear role in naming the person, Tammam Salam, assigned to form a new government. Before the necessary constitutional steps were taken in this regard, the MP from Beirut traveled to Riyadh, where he met with a number of officials, most notably, Bandar Bin Sultan, the kingdom's intelligence chief. Following this meeting, the constitutional steps, as if mere formalities, were finalized, and Salam was pronounced prime minister-designate.
