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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

Lebanon urges unity to prevent fallout from shock exit by PM

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BEIRUT: Lebanon’s president on Monday appealed for the country’s political factions to remain united to face off any fallout from Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s shock resignation.


Hariri announced he was leaving his post in a television broadcast at the weekend from Saudi Arabia, where he met King Salman on Monday.


The surprise statement sparked concerns that Lebanon would be sent into a political tailspin, but President Michel Aoun sought to allay those fears on Monday.


Speaking to senior national security officials at the presidential palace, Aoun said Lebanon’s political leadership had responded positively to “calls for calm”.


“National unity remains the foundation for maintaining security and political stability in the country. All efforts should concentrate on preserving this unity, especially in the circumstances that the country is passing through,” Aoun said.


Top officials in the meeting included Lebanon’s defence and interior ministers, as well as the heads of the army and general security service.


After the meeting, Justice Minister Salim Jreissati said Aoun would not take any decisions before meeting with Hariri, according to the presidency.


It remains unclear when Hariri will return to Lebanon from Saudi Arabia, where he was meeting with King Salman and other Saudi officials on Monday.


The state-run Saudi Press Agency said the two leaders “reviewed the situation in Lebanon,” without providing additional details.


Hariri is a two-time premier whose father Rafiq held the same position for years and was assassinated in 2005.


In his televised resignation on Saturday, he accused Lebanese ally Hezbollah of taking over his country and destabilising the broader region.


His statement prompted fears that Lebanon — split into rival camps led by Hariri and Hezbollah — would be caught up in spiralling tensions in the region.


Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah sought to downplay the risks of conflict between Lebanon’s rival camps, or with his party’s arch-foe Israel.


“Do not listen to alarmist speeches... do not worry, there is nothing to worry about,” he said in a televised address on Sunday night.


“We will react responsibly and calmly... we are concerned about the security” of Lebanon, Nasrallah added.


Nasrallah said his party had not sought Hariri’s resignation, which had instead been “imposed” on the premier by outside forces.


He also called for “calm, patience and waiting until the reasons become clear” for Hariri stepping aside.


But Sami Atallah, executive director of the Lebanese Center for Policy Studies, said there was a real risk the country could descend into a fresh cycle of violence.


“The whole country is at stake. The whole political system is at stake,” Atallah said on Monday. With no obvious contender as the future prime minister, the political uncertainty could shake international confidence in Lebanon’s economy, he said.


“Are they (the leaders) going to be able to rise to the occasion, build the bridges, stop the political bickering, put their differences apart, and realise the gravity of the situation we are in.”


In the wake of Hariri’s resignation, Lebanon’s ministers will operate in a “caretaker” role until Aoun names a new prime minister who will then appoint new ministers.


The process typically takes months of political wrangling. The fresh political turmoil will also likely impact long-awaited legislative elections expected to be held in May, the first in nine years after parliament repeatedly extended its own term. — AFP


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