Introduction to the evening news 30-11-2011

Mikati’s corner won the round, or is it the battle, while in the other corner the losers are numerous: some were refusing to fund the STL and others were hopeful that Mikati will not be able to do the job.  

Questions were raised about the funding mechanism: Was the money drawn from the premiership’s budget or was it deducted from the Higher Relief Committee’s share? Regardless of the money’s provenance and far from the different interpretations pertaining to whether the decision was constitutional or not, realpolitik pushes us to take stock of the following facts:

Last Thursday, PM Najib Mikati said on Kalam Ennas TV show: “Either the STL will be funded or I will throw in the towel”, and then there was funding.   

Hezbollah Secretary General announced on Martyr’s Day that the party refuses to fund the STL, saying that it does not even exist. However, funding happened without a whisper from Hezbollah, which may imply an implicit acceptance without the trouble of officially adopting the decision.

General Michel Aoun based his arguments for why the tribunal should not be funded on its illegitimacy. “If PM Mikati wishes to fund the STL, let him do so from his own pocket”, Aoun said, adding that any citizen has the right to sue Mikati for wasting public funds. However, Aoun couldn’t keep up with his high standards and went two steps back by saying that funding is a ransom and stability is a priority.

The decision embarrassed March 14 parties. In fact, they were betting, or maybe hoping, that this step would not see the light, therefore they resorted to criticizing the mechanism of funding. This impression was crystalized in Siniora’s remarks when he accused PM Mikati of “insulting the Lebanese’s intelligence”.

In conclusion, PM Mikati will observe all the reactions while basking in the glory of his triumph, a triumph that breathed new life into an otherwise dying government. But how will his allies respond? What will be the new argument used by March 14 to attack him?

On a completely different note, a series of developments occurred on the Syrian front. In fact, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem attended the meeting held by the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation in the Saudi town of Jeddah. The UAE also announced that all flights to Syria will be suspended starting next week. For its part, Turkey imposed its own round of sanctions on Syria.