Lebanon's ruling majority win crucial elections

Lebanon's March 14 Alliance won a majority of parliamentary seats in elections on Monday, dealing a blow to the Iranian-backed March 8 coalition, led by Hezbollah, a result which was supported and cheered on by Western powers like the Unites States and France.

The ruling March 14 party, headed by Saad Hariri, won 71 seats out of the 128-member parliament, maintaining its majority in parliament while Hezbollah and its allies won 57 seats in districts in southern Lebanon.

"I thank all the members of the March 14 election machine. They worked day and night to reach this result. I also thank all March 14 supporters all over Lebanon for the effort they made," a triumphant Hariri, son of slain former premier Rafiq Harir, told cheering supporters.

I thank all the members of the March 14 election machine. They worked day and night to reach this result. I also thank all March 14 supporters all over Lebanon for the effort they made

Saad Hariri

The opposition confirmed defeat and Member of Parliament Hassan Fadlallah from Hezbollah reiterated the Shiite party's calls for "national partnership" while one politician said it appeared voters had been spooked by fears that the Shiite Muslim group could impose an Islamist state in Lebanon.

"What happened today is a victory for the logic of the state," Prime Minister Fouad Siniora said.

Hezbollah's weapons

As soon as the results were out Hezbollah warned that its weapons arsenal was not a subject open to discussion and said the majority must not start to question the movement.

"The majority must commit not to question our role as a resistance party, the legitimacy of our weapons arsenal and the fact that Israel is an enemy state," Hezbollah official Mohamed Raad said.

"The results indicate that the crisis will continue, unless the majority changes its attitude," said Raad, an MP who kept his seat in the new parliament.

Hezbollah's arsenal was scrutinized by the outgoing national unity government and was at the center of a national dialogue to define a defense strategy for Lebanon.

The majority must commit not to question our role as a resistance party, the legitimacy of our weapons arsenal and the fact that Israel is an enemy state

Hezbollah official

Official breakdown

Lebanon's Interior Minister Ziad Baroud announced the official breakdown and final results of 14 constituencies out of 26.

Christian Maronites in the Bishri constituency voted 37 percent with Streida Touq and Eli Kiruz winning two seats as representatives while final results of the Baalbek constituency were 49 percent voted for 10 seats in parliament six of which were Shiites, two Sunnis, one Maronite and one Roman Catholic.

In the Sur constituency a winning vote of 48 percent secured four Shiite seats for Abdul Majid Saleh, Mohammed Fneish, Nawaf al-Muswi and Ali Khrees.

A 68 percent majority vote in Sidon got the Sunnis two seats in parliament for Siniora and Bahiya Hariri. In the Maronite majority Jezzine constituency, three seats were for Ziyad Aswad, Michele Helow, while Isaam Sawaya won for the Roman Catholics.

Forty-two percent of the Bint Jebeil constituency voted for three Shiite seats in parliament won by Hassan Fadlallah, Ali Bazi and Ayoub Hamid.

Under Lebanon's complex power-sharing system, seats are divided equally between majority Muslims and minority Christians, who make up about a third of the four-million population.