Syrian-backed opposition claims victory in Lebanon poll

BEIRUT (AFP) - Lebanon's Western-backed ruling majority was dealt a blow yesterday in by-elections that split the country's Christian camp in two and boosted the Syrian-backed opposition ahead of a presidential poll.

Official results showed the candidate representing opposition leader Michel Aoun winning by a slim margin of 418 votes over former president Amin Gemayel, who was supported by the ruling Western-backed coalition.

Camille Khoury won 39,534 votes as against 39,116 for Gemayel.

Aoun and Gemayel both made separate calls for unity after the results were announced but bickered over who has the mandate to represent their community.

"These elections have shown that the solution to the Lebanese crisis is found in respect for institutions. This is why I am calling for reconciliation between Christians... so that presidential commitments can be respected," Gemayel told a news conference.

"These elections were effectively a test. They have shown that General Aoun's support is in broad decline in Christian regions because of the policies he has followed."

Aoun seemed to strike a conciliatory note in a subsequent news conference of his own, but also claimed support from all Christian confessions as well as Sunni and Shiite Muslims.

"Gemayel has spoken of a reconciliation under the aegis of the Maronite (Christian) patriarch. We are in agreement on this and I extend my hand," he said.

"But I dispute his analysis that I am not representative of Christians. Maronites are not the only Christians," he added.

Aoun called the Metn region where Sunday's vote took place a "microcosm" of Lebanese society: "There are Maronites, Orthodox, Armenians, Shiites and Sunnis. We won in a diverse constituency, which means we are popular in all the communities."

The by-elections were to replace two murdered anti-Syrian MPs, the latest in a spate of politically linked killings that have rocked the country since the 2005 assassination of former prime minister Rafiq Hariri.

The outcome of the vote was important as it showed which way the country's divided Christian community was leaning ahead of a presidential election scheduled for next month.