PM Mikati’s ‘Lunch Break Hour’ of Mourning

Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said all businesses would pause for one hour on Tuesday between Noon and 1:00 p.m. to mourn the death of the 17 soldiers killed during clashes Sunday and Monday with Saida Sheikh Ahmed Al-Assir’s supporters.

An hour? An hour. “A lunch break hour,” as Pierre Khoury so succinctly put it.

This is the same prime minister that declared October 20, 2012 a day of national mourning for the “abominable crime” and assassination of Lebanon’s intelligence chief Wissam El-Hassan.

One man gets a full day of mourning, while 17 men – soldiers and officers of the Lebanese Armed Forces – get only 60 minutes. Frankly, I’ve spent longer grieving over an ex-boyfriend who I found out cheated on me.

And let’s add on to this general neglect for the loss of precious lives, MTV’s shameful airing of the Murex D’Or awards ceremony, which aired live on Sunday night in the midst of the unrest in Saida. C’mon TV executives! Just C’mon. You couldn’t have recorded the show and aired it later on?

These Tweeps know what’s up:

So we get 3 days of mourning 4 the death of the Saudi Crown Prince, yet only 1 hour for the slaughter of 20 soldiers. #Lebanon @Najib_Mikati

— Dany Moussa (@danymoussa) June 24, 2013

aka lunch break –_– @nmoawad: LOL @ @Najib_Mikati: Public mourning for army martyrs tomorrow by stopping work for one hour at 1pm.

— F N (@footnem) June 24, 2013

LOL @ @Najib_Mikati: Public mourning for army martyrs tomorrow by stopping work for one hour at 1pm. #Lebanon #Saida #mahzali

— Nadine Moawad (@nmoawad) June 24, 2013

And at least someone’s doing it right:

(The caption reads in English: Salute to the army.”)