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Lebanon’s Christian leader says he still wants Hariri as PM

Bassil said some politicians were trying to freeze Aoun out altogether, preventing him from choosing any minister, turning the president into ‘a picture on the wall... to be broken when necessary’

The leader of Lebanon’s biggest Christian political party said on Sunday he still wanted Prime Minister-designate Saad Al Hariri to form a new government, and blamed political opponents for months of political paralysis.

Lebanon’s politicians have argued over the structure of a new government since the last one quit in the atermath of the devastating August 2020 Beirut port explosion, leaving the country adrit as it sinks deeper into economic crisis.

Veteransunnimuslimpoliticianhaririwasnamed premier for a fourth time in October, promising to form a cabinet of specialists to enact reforms needed to unlock foreign aid, but the process has stalled over nominations of ministers.

“We want a government today, not tomorrow and with the leadership of Saad Al Hariri,” Gebran Bassil, leader of the Free Patriotic Movement, the biggest Christian bloc, said in a televised address on Sunday.

Bassil, who is also President Michel Aoun’s sonin-law, said his bloc had made concessions but opponents were pushing to prevent the president from naming a single minister.

He appealed to the leader of Lebanon’s powerful movement Hizbollah, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, to step in.

Hizbollah, listed as a terrorist organisation by the United States, is a political ally of Basil’s party.

It has repeatedly called for the formation of a government, urging all those involved to offer concessions.

“I want Nasrallah to be a judge because I trust him and his honesty,” Bassil said. “He knows how much we conceded on the cabinet formation.”

Bassil was hit with US sanctions last year for alleged corruption and his ties to Hizbollah.

The European Union’s foreign policy chief said on Saturday the bloc may also impose sanctions on Lebanon’s political leaders if they fail to break the government deadlock, though he did not name any individuals. The political impasse has prevented Lebanon launching reforms that potential donors insist are a precondition for aid.

Meanwhile foreign reserves are running out and fuel shortages, power cuts and gaps in medical supplies are spreading.

Under a sectarian power-sharing system, the president must be a Maronite Christian and the prime minister a Sunni Muslim.

Bassil said some politicians were trying to freeze Aoun out altogether, preventing him from choosing any minister and turning the president into “a picture on the wall... to be broken when necessary.

Speakingaterwhathecalleda“frankexchange” with President Michel Aoun, Borrell said he was bringing a firm message that the country stood on the edge of financial collapse and politicians could not afford to waste more time.

“The crisis Lebanon is facing is a domestic crisis. It’s a self-imposed crisis,” he told reporters ater talks with Aoun.

“It’s not a crisis coming from abroad or from external factors. It’s a home-made crisis, a crisis done by yourselves.”

Lebanon’s currency has lost 90% of its value. More than half the population are living in poverty and struggling with rampant inflation, power blackouts and shortages of fuel and food.

The crisis has been exacerbated by political stalemate, with Hariri at loggerheads with Aoun for months over forming a new government capable of introducing reforms which could unlock desperately needed foreign aid.

“We stand ready to assist,” Borrell said. “But if there is further obstruction to solutions to the current multi-dimensional crisis in the country, we will have to consider other courses of action as some member states have proposed.”

“The council of the European Union has been including other options including targeted sanctions.” The possible sanctions are part of an effort by some EU states, led by France, to ramp up pressure on Lebanon’s fractious politicians ater nearly a year of gridlock.

An EU diplomatic note seen by Reuters showed that criteria for the sanctions under preparation are likely to be corruption, obstructing efforts to form a government, financial mishandling and human rights abuses.

The bloc has yet to decide on which approach to take. Borrell will report back to foreign ministers on Monday ater his talks in Beirut, where he was also due to meet Hariri, the speaker of parliament and the caretaker prime minister.

Middle East

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2021-06-21T07:00:00.0000000Z

2021-06-21T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://daralkhaleej.pressreader.com/article/281616718328357

Dar AlKhaleej