Standstill persists in Lebanon
Lebanon has been without a president for over a year now, and the current international pressure to hold elections is not going over well with the country's term-extending parliament.
![LEBANON-POLITICS/ Lebanon's Prime Minister Tammam Salam gestures as he argues during a cabinet meeting in the Grand Saray in Beirut, Lebanon July 9, 2015. Hundreds of supporters of a Lebanese Christian politician protested in Beirut on Thursday against the Sunni prime minister they claim is marginalizing Christian influence, stirring tensions in a country in crisis over war in neighboring Syria. Michel Aoun accuses Prime Minister Salam of taking decisions without cross-party consensus and usurping powers reserved for the pr](/sites/default/files/styles/article_hero_medium/public/almpics/2015/09/RTX1JPAR.jpg/RTX1JPAR.jpg?h=f7822858&itok=qFOuyRVR)
BEIRUT — Facing international pressure to elect a new president for Lebanon, some political parties in Beirut are suspicious of what they call a dubious request.
These political parties are requesting, first and foremost, that parliamentary elections be held. They seem assured of their stance from a legal and constitutional standpoint. They also seem certain that the confrontation between their own demands and the international ones to elect a president will end up favoring their side and Lebanon will resist caving to international pressure.