OTTAWA: Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper was Thursday to call for the two-week old parliament to be suspended to block an opposition bid to topple his government and take over without fresh elections.Harper was meeting with Governor General Michaelle Jean, the country's acting head of state as the representative of Queen Elizabeth II, to ask her to end the current session to buy him time to resolve the political turmoil. The unprecedented move comes after a week of political turmoil, which has rocked the country and sharply divided public opinion.The Liberal opposition led by Stephane Dion has spearheaded moves to oust the minority Conservative government, accusing Harper of failing to address the plunging economy in the Group of Eight nation.As a parliamentary vote of no-confidence looms on Monday, Harper is fighting for his survival just seven weeks after being re-elected at the head of a minority government in snap elections.Dion has called on Jean to dissolve the current government and install in its place a three-party opposition alliance, including Quebec separatists, without fresh elections. Opposition politicians notably accuse the government of failing to boost the country's economy as it confronts the global financial crisis.Under the Canadian constitution, the governor general has the power to accept or reject the prime minister's request to suspend parliament. Constitutional experts say no governor general has ever refused a prime minister's request to suspend parliament. But then no premier has ever requested such a move so soon after an election.Opposition leader Dion has rejected any move to halt the work of the assembly.
BEIRUT: Thousands of people converged Saturday on central Beirut to mark the fourth anniversary of the assassination of Lebanese former premier Rafiq Hariri.Waving Lebanese flags and carrying pictures of the slain leader, men, women and children gathered under sunny skies in Martyr's Square where members of the parliamentary majority were to address the crowd. The rally comes as final preparations are underway in The Hague for the launch of the international tribunal set up to bring Hariri's killers to justice. It also comes as the country prepares for legislative elections in June that will pit Western-backed political parties against a Hezbollah-led alliance backed by Syria and Iran.Hariri died in a massive car bombing on February 14, 2005 that also killed 22 others. The assassination was widely blamed on then Lebanese power-broker Syria, which has denied any involvement. The attack on the Beirut seafront was one of the worst acts of political violence to rock Lebanon since t...
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