BEIRUT, Oct 25 (Reuters) - Lebanon's pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud vowed on Tuesday to stay in office until the last minute of his term, defying fresh calls to resign after a U.N. probe implicated Syria in the murder of an ex-prime minister. "President Emile Lahoud confirms...his determination to continue shouldering his responsibilities until the last minute of his constitutional term," a statement from his office said. | "Or the last flight out, whichever comes first." |
Lahoud has faced mounting pressure to step down since the February killing of Rafik al-Hariri threw Lebanon into its worst political crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war. With the U.N. investigation last week implicating Syrian security officials and their Lebanese allies in the murder, Lahoud is facing fresh calls to go.
The inquiry reported that a man suspected of involvement in Hariri's murder had called Lahoud on his mobile phone minutes before the truck bomb that killed the former prime minister and 22 other people in Beirut. Lahoud's office has denied that he had any contact with the suspect, Mahmoud Abdel-Al, who has since been detained in connection with the assassination. Also detained are four pro-Syrian generals including Republican Guard chief Mustapha Hamdan, a close aide of Lahoud.
The president's original six-year term was extended last year through a constitutional amendment to allow him to remain in office until 2007. But some Lebanese deputies say it was only passed under intense Syrian pressure. Syrian forces withdrew from Lebanon in April, ending a 29-year presence, amid local protest and international outcry over Hariri's murder. Elections in May-June returned a parliament that has been critical of Syria, leaving Lahoud increasingly isolated.