The prime minister-designate began putting together a government he said will have the chief goal of organizing crucial parliament elections before a May 31 deadline in an effort to end Lebanon's long political crisis.
Najib Mikati, a telecommunications tycoon who has close links with Syrian President Bashar Assad, said he was to meet with President Emile Lahoud yesterday and that he intends to announce a government as soon as possible.
That formula would satisfy the anti-Syrian opposition, which has for weeks sought a neutral Cabinet focused solely on calling the election. The opposition wants the polls to be held on time because it is confident of winning a majority in the 128-member parliament, ending the domination by pro-Syrian factions.
Lebanon has had no government since Feb. 28, raising fears of a delay in elections that are supposed to take place before the current parliament's mandate expires May 31.
Meanwhile, lawmaker Bassem Fleihan, who was badly wounded in the Feb. 14 blast that killed former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, died Monday at a Paris military hospital where he was being treated, making him the 21st victim of the bombing. He was 41.
Mikati, who was invited by Lahoud on Friday to form a government, consulted with legislators on the formation of a new Cabinet, meeting first with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, then with other lawmakers, including opposition members.
Speaking to reporters after consultations ended, Mikati said he was leaning toward a small Cabinet with ministers who were not running for election.
The main goal of the Cabinet "will be passing the election law and holding general elections within the constitutional time-frame," he said. It was the first time Mikati, who had earlier said he wanted elections "as soon as possible," specifically mentioned the May 31 deadline.
A plan by Switzerland’s right-wing People’s Party to cap the population at 10 million has the backing of almost half the country, according to a poll before an expected vote next year. The party, which has long campaigned against immigration, argues that too-fast population growth is overwhelming housing, transport and public services. The level of support comes despite the government urging voters to reject it, warning that strict curbs would damage the economy and prosperity, as Swiss companies depend on foreign workers. The poll by newspaper group Tamedia/20 Minuten and released yesterday showed that 48 percent of the population plan to vote
PARLIAMENT CHAOS: Police forcibly removed Brazilian Deputy Glauber Braga after he called the legislation part of a ‘coup offensive’ and occupied the speaker’s chair Brazil’s lower house of Congress early yesterday approved a bill that could slash former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro’s prison sentence for plotting a coup, after efforts by a lawmaker to disrupt the proceedings sparked chaos in parliament. Bolsonaro has been serving a 27-year term since last month after his conviction for a scheme to stop Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva from taking office after the 2022 election. Lawmakers had been discussing a bill that would significantly reduce sentences for several crimes, including attempting a coup d’etat — opening up the prospect that Bolsonaro, 70, could have his sentence cut to
A powerful magnitude 7.6 earthquake shook Japan’s northeast region late on Monday, prompting tsunami warnings and orders for residents to evacuate. A tsunami as high as three metres (10 feet) could hit Japan’s northeastern coast after an earthquake with an estimated magnitude of 7.6 occurred offshore at 11:15 p.m. (1415 GMT), the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said. Tsunami warnings were issued for the prefectures of Hokkaido, Aomori and Iwate, and a tsunami of 40cm had been observed at Aomori’s Mutsu Ogawara and Hokkaido’s Urakawa ports before midnight, JMA said. The epicentre of the quake was 80 km (50 miles) off the coast of
RELAXED: After talks on Ukraine and trade, the French president met with students while his wife visited pandas, after the pair parted ways with their Chinese counterparts French President Emmanuel Macron concluded his fourth state visit to China yesterday in Chengdu, striking a more relaxed note after tough discussions on Ukraine and trade with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) a day earlier. Far from the imposing Great Hall of the People in Beijing where the two leaders held talks, Xi and China’s first lady, Peng Liyuan (彭麗媛), showed Macron and his wife Brigitte around the centuries-old Dujiangyan Dam, a World Heritage Site set against the mountainous landscape of Sichuan Province. Macron was told through an interpreter about the ancient irrigation system, which dates back to the third century
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