Lebanese PM accuses Syria of trying hold Lebanon hostage

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Saniora accused Syria on Sunday of trying to take Lebanon hostage by blocking the election of a new president and asked Arabs for help to end the political deadlock. Saniora said he wanted Arab foreign ministers to meet soon to discuss the crisis, three months after the group unanimously adopted a plan that called for the Lebanese parliament to elect Army chief Gen. Michel Suleiman as consensus president. "It is not permissible to kidnap a brotherly country and take it hostage in the hope of getting a ransom," Saniora told reporters after meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. "Lebanon wants the ministers to discuss the basic issues, mainly Lebanese-Syrian relations," said Saniora, who is on a regional tour seeking Arab support to end the Lebanese crisis. He is also scheduled to travel to Saudi Arabia.