A Lebanese diplomat was yesterday appointed to form a new government after winning the backing of major political parties in the crisis-hit nation, which is still reeling from a devastating explosion that killed and wounded thousands of people.
Lebanese President Michel Aoun asked Lebanese Ambassador to Germany Mustapha Adib to form a new government after he secured 90 votes among the legislators in the 128-member parliament.
The consultations were being held hours before French President Emmanuel Macron was due to arrive for a two day-visit, during which he as expected to press Lebanese officials to formulate a new political pact to lift the country out of its multiple crises.
Photo: Reuters
At least 190 people died and 6,000 were injured in the Aug. 4 blast, which devastated the city’s port and caused widespread damage to residential and commercial areas in the capital.
The government resigned less than a week after the blast.
Adib told reporters his number one priority would be to quickly form a government able to implement crucial reforms to regain the trust of the Lebanese and international community.
Photo: EPA-EFE
He said he would form a Cabinet of experts and work with parliament to “put the country on track of improvement and to end the dangerous financial, economic and social drainage.”
“The opportunity in front of our country is narrow, and the mission that I accepted is based on all political groups knowing that. The government should be formed very quickly,” he added.
Macron and other world leaders, as well as the IMF, have refused to give assistance to Lebanon before its leaders enact major reforms. The swift consensus around Adib, a little-known diplomat, signaled a sense of urgency by Lebanon’s traditional politicians to try and contain the rapidly worsening economic and financial crisis and show movement ahead of Macron’s visit.
Former Lebanese prime minister Saad Hariri yesterday emerged from his meeting with Aoun telling reporters his 18-member bloc had given its backing to Adib.
He called for the formation of a government of experts “that implement reforms aimed at restoring the world’s confidence in our economy so we can start to emerge from this crisis.”
Adib, who returned from Germany to Lebanon on Saturday, was the only name to emerge as a favorite for the post of prime minister, who according to Lebanon’s sectarian-based power-sharing system has to be a Sunni Muslim.
The candidate who gets the most support is asked to form the new Cabinet, but Lebanon’s divided political class has often been bogged down over who holds senior posts and key ministries.
Adib was named by four former prime ministers, including Hariri, on the eve of yesterday’s consultations.
Earlier on Sunday, the head of the powerful Hezbollah militant group, Hassan Nasrallah, said his supporters would cooperate and facilitate the formation of a government that would be able to improve economic conditions and undertake major reforms.
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