Word: franjiehs
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...shaky cease-fire shifted attention back to Lebanon's complicated political situation, which was about as impenetrable as the khamsin. Parliament in a hasty session had ratified a constitutional amendment authorizing early election of a new President to succeed Suleiman Franjieh, and the stubborn Maronite Christian Chief Executive finally agreed to step down. His successor must be one on whom all factions can agree, and one, moreover, acceptable to neighboring Syria. That might boost the chances of Elias Sarkis, quiet governor of Lebanon's central bank, while dampening those of Centrist Raymond Eddé, an outspokenly antiright wing...
...basic issue of the discussions was how to arrange the quick election of a successor to President Suleiman Franjieh, the conservative, discredited Maronite leader from the northern town of Zgharta. The predominantly Moslem leftist coalition called the National Movement, led by Kamal Jumblatt, has vowed to fight on until Franjieh is ousted. At week's end the 98 members of the Lebanese Parliament-meeting for the first time in more than a month-approved a constitutional amendment providing for immediate elections...
...measure is signed by Franjieh -there is no guarantee that the stubborn old mountain man will do so-the way will be clear for the legislature to pick a new head of state. Because Parliament's official chamber had been sacked during the fighting and is still not secure, the deputies met in a villa, near the Beirut race track, that was supposed to be on neutral ground. The site turned out to be the scene of some of the week's bloodiest clashes...
...envoy in Amman, he strapped a pearl-handled pistol to his waist, rode to the palace in an armored personnel carrier and presented his credentials to the King. Brown flew into Beirut last week unarmed and with instructions from Secretary of State Kissinger to make contact with Jumblatt and Franjieh and offer the good offices of the U.S. as mediator. State Department spokesmen carefully explained that Brown was not authorized to deal with Arafat or any other Palestinian leader. Nonetheless, it was not beyond the realm of possibility that informal contacts might be made...
Although Brown conferred with a wide range of Christian and Moslem leaders (including President Franjieh), the man principally responsible for arranging the freeze was Syrian President Hafez Assad. He was greatly embarrassed by the collapse of the January 23 cease-fire arranged by his Foreign Minister Abdel Halim Khaddam. Assad's government launched a diplomatic offensive to get Jumblatt's forces to stop fighting...