Lebanon fails to elect new president for the 8th time

The Lebanese parliament failed, for the eighth time yesterday, to elect a new president to succeed President Michel Suleiman whose term ended in May, prolonging the power vacuum in the country, which has suffered from renewed violence.

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri postponed the vote to elect a new president until July 23 because not enough Parliamentarians attended yesterday’s session.

Lebanese political parties have been boycotting the election sessions in recent weeks and accusing each other of reaching an impasse.

Meanwhile, four people were wounded yesterday when unidentified men threw a bomb at a cafe in the city of Tripoli in northern Lebanon. Lebanese security sources believe the incident occurred because the cafe was open during the month of Ramadan.

In another incident, a Syrian person was killed and an officer and a member of the judicial police were injured while trying to arrest a person in the town of Bawadi, west of the city of Baalbek in the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon.

The Lebanese National News Agency said the judicial police raided the house of Muhammad Shamas in the Bekaa Valley who. Shamas is accused of kidnapping and exchange of fire. The agency pointed out that an exchange of fire occurred during the raid which led to the death of the Syrian Ahmed Aleidawi and injured Shamas.