Message to U.S.: Don't sell Lebanon short

Message to U.S.: Don't sell Lebanon short
Brother of slain Lebanese minister fears region heading for turmoil

The United States should not sell Lebanon short while debating changes in American policy in Iraq and the Middle East region, Samy Gemayel, brother of assassinated Lebanese politician Pierre Gemayel told WND in an interview.

Gemayel's brother, Lebanon's industry minister, was murdered last week while driving through a Christian suburb of Beirut.

Gemayel refused to assign blame to any party or country for the assassination, the latest in a string of six political killings to rock Lebanon the last two years, preferring instead to withhold comment until the results of a national probe are released. But Gemayel blasted Syria for "all of Lebanon's major woes since 1975," including the assassination in 1982 of his uncle, Bashir Gemayel, who was then the Lebanese president.

Lebanon held three days of mourning last week for Pierre Gemayel, the son of Amine Gemayel, who served as Lebanese president after Bashir Gemayel was killed. Pierre and Samy were Bashir's nephews.

The assassination last week immediately followed moves in Lebanon's parliament to establish a tribunal to try the killers of former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri, who was assassinated in a car-bomb attack in February 2005.

Syria has been widely blamed for the Hariri assassination, which prompted a general Lebanese uprising that resulted in the removal of Syrian forces that were present in Lebanon for nearly 30 years.

Earlier this month, Hezbollah bolted the Lebanese government over the collapse of talks on the militia's demands for effective veto power in the parliament. Hezbollah had demanded one third of the cabinet's 24 seats, prompting some ministers to accuse the militia of seeking veto rights to protect Syria from prosecution in the Hariri affair.

Hezbollah leaders have threatened street protests unless their demands are met.

Yesterday, a Hezbollah official told the Lebanese Daily Star newspaper the militia will start a series of "surprising and random" acts in the near future to force the country's parliamentary cabinet to resign.

"We are going through one of the most dangerous, fragile periods for Lebanon," Samy Gemayel told WND. "The people want independence from Syrian influence in the government, but there are forces working against this."

Gemayel called on Syrian-appointed Lebanese President Amil Lahoud to resign. Lahoud's presidency was set to expire in 2004 but was extended that year in an amendment to the constitution widely attributed to pressure from Syria, which maintained tens of thousands of troops in Lebanon at the time.

Gemayel said that in the face of Hezbollah's latest threats anti-Syrian lawmakers are debating holding a series of major protest marches in the coming days similar to the mass protests in Lebanon last year that prompted Damascus to withdraw its troops from the country.

"The situation here is bad. Economic life has stopped. The people seem paralyzed. No one is going out to cafes and restaurants. There needs to be a change," said Gemayal.

Gemayel, 26, comes from one of Lebanon's most prominent political families, but he is seen by many political observers in his country as being an independent thinker.

He has led student movements against Syrian occupation and has differed publicly from the views of others in his family by calling for a new political order in Lebanon that would create a new parliament and constitution to represent all sects in the country.

"If you look at all of Lebanon's problems the past 50 years, most stem from the fact that there is no representative government so people have always had to take to the streets to express their views," says Gemayel.

"Previous Lebanese institutions have failed. Our current institutions have failed. We need new institutions and a new political formula so everyone feels they are fairly represented," Gemayel said.

Meanwhile, Gemayel said he is "concerned" by possible changes in America's Middle East policy, including talk of withdrawal from Iraq following the Democrat's election victory earlier this month and calls by some in the U.S. government for dialogue with Iran and Syria.

"Dialogue can be helpful if it is the right kind of dialogue with the right people. But please don't sell Lebanon short during this dialogue or any policy changes," said Gemayel.

Some have speculated Gemayel would soon enter Lebanese politics, perhaps seeking his slain brother's seat in parliament.

Gemayel told WND he is "not thinking about politics now."

"Maybe later, but right now my family and my country are still in a mourning stage," he said.