BEIRUT — Lebanese Parliament on Thursday passed two laws that President Emile Lahoud had vetoed earlier, dealing a major blow to the pro-Syrian leader in his battle with legislators trying to oust him.
The legislature passed the bills by a simple majority. As they had been approved once before, they became law on Thursday without having to be signed by the president. The one law organises the affairs of the Druse community, an Islamic sect, and the other deals with the Constitutional Council, the supreme court for legislative questions.
Lahoud criticised the parliament’s move, issuing a statement that described the passage of the bills as “regrettable and provocative”.
"My Syrian masters will be most displeased." | Earlier this year, Lahoud had refused to sign the bills and sent them back to parliament saying they needed to be endorsed by consensus. His move was seen as an attempt to stop the anti-Syrian majority in the assembly from having its way. |