US diplomat: No aid if Hezbollah heads government
High-ranking American official tells Asharq Al-Awsat Congress would deny Lebanon of any aid should Shiite group head next government
A high-ranking US diplomat said the establishment of a Hezbollah-led government in Lebanon would hurt relations between the two countries, the London-based Arabic newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat reported Sunday.
The American diplomat was quoted by the newspaper as saying that Congress would not provide military or any other aid to a government headed by Hezbollah.
According to Asharq Al-Awsat, reports coming from Beirut are saying that France is trying to mediate between Hezbollah and caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri's camp to have them agree on Najib Mikati as the compromise candidate to lead the next government.
Mikati, a former Lebanese PM, is considered a "technocrat."
On Friday Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, a potential kingmaker in Lebanese politics, threw his support behind Hezbollah, which toppled Hariri's government last week over a UN probe into the 2005 assassination of his father, former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
On Monday, the prosecutor of the UN-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) submitted a sealed indictment in the case, which is now being reviewed by a judge.
Hezbollah has said it expects party members to be implicated by the STL, which it accuses of being part of a US-Israeli plot.
Jumblatt, refused to say exactly how many lawmakers are with him, but his support is key for any candidate trying to form a government.
Meanwhile, a Christian Lebanese leader warned Saturday that Hezbollah would soon turn Lebanon into another version of the Gaza Strip if indeed it assumes political power in the country, trampling human rights and financial stability like Hamas.
"The situation will be similar to that in Gaza, and we all know what the positions of the world and the Arabs will be, aside from Syria, regarding this government," the leader of the Lebanese Forces told a press conference.
AFP contributed to the report
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