Fearful MPs “stay put” at luxury hotel in Beirut

 

Majority MPs taking up residence at the Phoenicia InterContinental Hotel for fear of assassination will remain there until a new president is elected or possibly even after a new president emerges, a security source said Sunday. “The area around the hotel remains a security zone with limited access,” the source told The Daily Star, adding that MPs fear for their lives and live as prisoners at the luxury hotel.

 

He said that as of midnight Friday, security forces went to “Plan B,” after “Plan A” introduced tough security measures in the run-up to Friday”s abortive electoral session.

 

“Under Plan B extraordinary measures will be taken to ensure security until a new president is elected, whatever time that takes, maintaining a high alert status for all security forces in the country,” the source said.
 

Cabinet ministers are also afraid for their lives as the government assumes presidential powers. “If two Cabinet ministers are killed the government would lose its constitutional legitimacy as it would have lost a third of its members,” the source said. Ministers are taking up residence in the Grand Serail.

 

Rumors circulated Sunday of possible security breaches in and around Beirut, but the source said all of them were false alarms, adding that “people are tense and anxious.”