Army in control, says Lebanese PM

Prime Minister Fuad Saniora sought to calm the Lebanese on the country's first day without a president, assuring them that the military, which has vowed to stay out of politics, is on the streets to prevent violence while deadlocked factions work to resolve the crisis.In his first comments since President Emile Lahoud stepped down without a successor, Mr Saniora defended his Western-backed government, saying it will continue to function according to the constitution. "Our main goal in the coming stage, which we hope will not take longer than a few days, will be to exert all possible efforts... to end this situation as soon as possible," he said.His comments came after a meeting with Cardinal Nasrallah Sfeir, head of the influential Maronite Catholic Church. Under Lebanon's division of power, the presidency is held by a Maronite.Mr Saniora dismissed a declaration by Mr Lahoud, who before departing the presidential palace said he handed over security powers to the army, saying the country is in a "state of emergency"."There is no state of emergency, and there is no need for that," Mr Saniora said. "There is absolutely no need for any Lebanese to be concerned about the security situation. The army is doing its work and is in full control of the situation on the ground."So far, the 56,000-member military has successfully kept this tiny, fractious country together, surviving one crisis after another since the February 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.Army chief of staff Major General Shawki al-Masri visited the Presidential Guards at Baabda Palace near Beirut and urged them to continue their job and "be ready to carry out additional missions".Maj Gen Al-Masri said the army command will strengthen security measures when needed as it "did in the past years". Beirut remained calm and shops opened for business, following a tumultuous day which intensified fears of street violence between supporters of Mr Saniora's pro-US government and the pro-Syrian opposition led by the Shiite militant group Hezbollah.
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=paPolitics_Sat_20_Lebanon_calm_Substitute&show_article=1&catnum=0
As in the days of Noah....