Lebanese PM Saad Hariri Resigns

Beirut, MINA – Lebanese prime minister appointed Saad Hariri resigned on Thursday after failing to form a government for the past eight months.

Hariri resigned after a brief meeting with President Michel Aoun at the Baabda Palace.

“I am stepping down from forming a government,” he told reporters, Al Jazeera reported. “Aoun demanded some amendments, which he deemed important, and said we would not be able to come to an understanding with each other… And may God save this country.”

Aoun accused Hariri of having decided to withdraw before their meeting.

“Hariri rejects any amendments related to changing ministries, their sectarian distribution, and the names associated with them,” the president’s office said in a statement.

In an interview with Lebanon’s Al Jadeed TV, Hariri said he chose his candidates based on their expertise and ability to reform the economy, but Aoun did not.

“I resigned in 2019 because I wanted an expert government, and if we form a Michel Aoun government then the country will not survive,” he said.

“The main problem of this country is Michel Aoun, who is allied with Hezbollah, who in turn protects it. This is the equation in this country and if someone can’t see it then they are blind,” he said.

Later that day, supporters of Hariri and his Future Movement party took to the streets, blocking roads by burning tires and trash cans in several areas around Beirut. Several dozen protesters in Beirut’s Sports City clashed with Lebanese soldiers in riot gear who fired rubber-coated steel bullets.

The main highway south of the capital was also targeted by demonstrators. Roads north of Tripoli and south of Sour were also blocked. (T/RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)