Lebanese opposition stresses right to peacefully move against gov't

Lebanese opposition on Monday stressed the right to peacefully move against the government led by Prime Minister Fouad Seniora.

"We are against all efforts to create sectarian and ethnic disputes," Hezbollah and Amal movement said in a joint statement.

"Unity is the only means to protect Lebanon," the statement said.

It accused Seniora's government of hindering efforts to reach a solution to the current political crisis which is sweeping the country.

Lebanese opposition has been camping out in the Lebanese capital since Dec. 1, calling for resignation of Seniora's government.

The country's sectarian tension in the cabinet began to escalate last month when six pro-Syrian ministers resigned after Seniora and the anti-Syrian majority in the parliament rejected the opposition's demand for a new national unity government.

In the wake of their resignations, the opposition said that Seniora's government had lost its legitimacy since Shiite Muslims are no longer represented.

However, the anti-Syrian parliamentary majority has accused the opposition of doing Damascus' and Tehran's bidding and seeking to undermine the formation of an international tribunal on the case of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri's killing.

Source: Xinhua