The World : Lebanon Split Unresolved
Right-wing Christian legislators in Lebanon boycotted a voting session of Parliament that was to elect a new Speaker. In the absence of a 39-member quorum required to extend the term of Hussein Husseini, the current Speaker, or elect a new one, the 26 Muslim deputies who showed up for the session declared Husseini a caretaker Speaker until a successor can be elected. The Christian deputies countered by issuing a statement rejecting Husseini, a staunch ally of Syria, and naming their own Speaker pro tempore--Kazem Khalil, 88, the oldest deputy.
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