Lebanon's political crisis took a turn for the worse on Sunday when the president said the Cabinet was no longer legitimate after the resignation of five Shiite Muslim ministers, including two representing Hezbollah.
President Emile Lahoud's position is a blow to his political rival, Prime Minister Fuad Saniora, but does not carry legal weight because the Lebanese president is not empowered to dissolve the government.
Lahoud sent a letter to Saniora's office, saying that the 24-member Cabinet was no longer constitutional after all five Shiite Muslim ministers submitted their resignations Saturday.
He based his position on Article Five of the constitution that states "all sects should be justly represented in the Cabinet."
Lahoud's opponents in the parliamentary majority called on the government to meet anyway to approve an international tribunal in the assassination of former Premier Rafik Hariri.
The parliamentary majority which is backed by the United States and is opposed to Syria has accused Hezbollah and Amal, the main pro-Syrian and pro-Iranian Shiite groups, of doing Damascus's and Tehran's bidding and seeking to undermine the formation of the international tribunal.
Saad Hariri, leader of the parliamentary majority, met on Sunday with the factions making up the majority coalition, and directly accused Syria and Iran of seeking to scuttle the formation of the international tribunal.
Hariri called upon the Lebanese government to "respect the decision that was taken on December 12, 2005, in the presence of the Lebanese president, that calls for the formation of an international tribunal".
The tribunal is to try suspects in the 2005 assassination of his father, former prime minister Rafik Hariri
The late Hariri's assassination was blamed by his supporters on Syria.
A UN investigation also implicated senior Syrian and allied Lebanese security officials.
The resignations of the five ministers, including two representing Hezbollah, left the Shiites, the country's largest single sect, out of the government.
It followed a stalemate in talks for a national unity government.
The resignations strips the government of major players.
While the 24-member government can still muster a two-thirds quorum to meet and take decisions, approval of the international tribunal without the presence of the Shiites could throw in doubt the legitimacy over such a decision in Lebanon's complex sectarian balance of political power.
