Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri formally announced on Tuesday that a presidential session to elect a new president will be postponed till Friday, namely Nov. 23.
Berri said in an up-to-the-minute statement that the session would be convened at 1:00 p.m. (1100 GMT) on Friday but he didn't elaborate the cause for the postponement.
Earlier in the day, international and local media have reported the postponement, citing a wide range of unofficial sources including French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner and Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa.
The fourth delay for the presidential election since September came as Moussa and Kouchner arrived in the country in a last-ditch attempt to defuse the political standoff.
Lebanon's parliament had planned to hold the session on Wednesday to vote a replacement to the incumbent President Emile Lahoud whose term runs out on Saturday, or Nov. 24.
But until now, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a key opposition figure, and majority leader Saad al-Hariri have failed to choose a consensus candidate from a list proposed by Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir.
Many fear that the failure in reaching a deal on the presidential candidate could result in chaos and violence.
More than 10,000 troops from Lebanon's various security forces have been brought into the capital to maintain order, while a similar number of rapid-response troops will be on hand for support if needed, which could bring the total number of forces on the streets to 20,000, a security source said.
Also on Tuesday, Army Commander Gen. Michel Sleiman said that his troops would confront any attempt to destabilize Lebanon, local news website Naharnet reported.
"Any aggression on security is (tantamount to) national treason, and any weapon directed against the interior is a weapon of treachery," Sleiman said, calling on the troops to protect their homeland.
According to the country's power-sharing system, Lebanon's president must be a Maronite Christian and is elected by parliament rather than by popular votes.
A two-thirds majority is required for a candidate to be elected by parliament in a first round of voting. In the event of a second round, a simple majority suffices.
(Xinhua News Agency November 21, 2007)
