The terrorist attack on the Iranian Embassy in Beirut yesterday, Nov. 19, with 23 dead and a larger number of wounded brings to the forefront the urgent need to expedite the Geneva II conference. The conference should not wait until mid-December to address the Syrian civil war and its regional impact on Syria’s neighbors. Equally important is to expedite the formation of Lebanon's cabinet so it can resume authority and defuse the emerging crisis in Lebanon.
For seven months, Lebanon's prime minister-designate has not been able to form a cabinet, making the country all the more vulnerable and allowing the sectarian divide to persist, endangering the stability of Lebanon.