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Hariri said willing to return as Lebanon PM, if given power to implement reforms
Hariri was asked today by Leb’s President Michel Aoun  ...president of Leb, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hizbullah...to stay on in a caretaker capacity, but may be willing to remain a full-fledged PM if his new cabinet "includes technocrats and [will] be capable of quickly implementing reforms needed to stave off economic collapse," Rooters reports. The agency explains Leb’s dire political situation: "Hariri resigned after nearly two weeks of massive protests against the political elite, accused by demonstrators of overseeing rampant state corruption, saying he had hit a ’dead end’ in trying to resolve the crisis. "The bigwig, who declined to be identified, said any new cabinet led by Hariri should be devoid of a group of top-tier politicians who were in the outgoing coalition government, without naming them. "The outgoing cabinet comprised top representatives of most of Leb’s sectarian parties, among them foreign minister Gebran Bassil of the Christian Free Patriotic Movement Despite its name a Christian party allied with Hizbullah, neither free nor particularly patriotic... who has been a prominent target of protesters. Bassil is a political ally of the powerful Iran-backed Shi’ite group Hezbollah, which had opposed the government’s resignation and has yet to comment on the resignation of Hariri, a long-time opponent of the group." Related: Saad Hariri: 2019-10-30 Aoun will not request caretaker cabinet after Leb PM Hariri resigns Saad Hariri: 2019-10-30 Lebanese protesters celebrate Hariri resignation - but want more Saad Hariri: 2019-10-26 Hamas arrests dozens of activists in bid to deter Leb-style protests in Gaza Related: Michel Aoun: 2019-10-30 Aoun will not request caretaker cabinet after Leb PM Hariri resigns Michel Aoun: 2019-10-25 Lebanon’s President Aoun refuses to step down, blames corruption for crisis Michel Aoun: 2019-10-25 Protest-hit Lebanon’s banks to stay shut until calm returns Posted by: trailing wife 2019-10-31 |
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