In search of a government

摘要

For months, November 23rd loomed as a critical date in Lebanon's turbulent politics. This was the final day of President Emile Lahoud's term of office, and the Lebanese parliament was constitutionally bound to elect a successor before that deadline. Failure to choose a new head of state, many said, could precipitate a slide into chaos and even a renewal of the 1975-90 civil war.