Lebanon announced on Friday the formation of a new government headed by Prime Minister Najib Mikati, after more than a year of delays due to lack of political consensus and amid pressure from the international community in the face of the deep economic crisis in the country.
Through tears, Mikati has acknowledged that the country is in a "very difficult" situation, according to the Lebanese newspaper
The Daily Star
.
The first meeting of the new cabinet is scheduled for Monday, when the country will definitely turn the page to an administration that has remained in office since August 10, 2020.
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"The President, [Michel] Aoun, and the Prime Minister, [Najib] Mikati, signed the decree to form the new Government in the presence of the President of Parliament, Nabih Berri," the Lebanese presidency reported on its Twitter account, to the awaits a speech to the nation from the palace south of Beirut, in which Mikati will report from the members of the Executive.
The crisis in Lebanon has driven 78% of the population into poverty and has seen the local currency lose 90% of its value against the US dollar in the last two years.
Youssef Khalil, a senior Central Bank official and assistant to Governor Riad Salameh, was appointed finance minister in the proposed new cabinet line up.
Like Prime Minister Hassan Diab's outgoing cabinet, the new one is expected to be made up of ministers with technical expertise appointed by the major parties.
According to sources cited by Reuters, the armed Shiite Islamist movement Hezbollah, an ally of President Aoun, designated a terrorist group by the United States, has appointed two of the 24 ministers.
These same political sources indicated that there had been intensive contacts during the night to try to reach an agreement.
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Before Mikati, Mustafa Adib and Saac Hariri also tried unsuccessfully to form a government.
The new prime minister, considered the richest man in Lebanon, has already served as prime minister on two previous occasions.
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