Naharnet

Arslan, Mrad Supporters Block Roads to Protest Govt Line-up

Angry supporters of Lebanese Democratic Party leader MP Talal Arslan on Monday blocked the international highway in the Mount Lebanon city of Aley, after the Druze lawmaker was not granted a key portfolio in the new cabinet.

Earlier Monday, Arslan had immediately resigned from his post as state minister in the new cabinet, accusing Premier Najib Miqati of being a "liar" and of seeking to deprive the minority Druze of key cabinet posts.

Nearly five months after his appointment, Miqati on Monday announced the formation of a 30-member cabinet.

Arslan’s supporters also blocked the Khaldeh highway, which connects Beirut with southern Lebanon, and roads in the Mount Lebanon town of Sofar and the southern area of Hasbaya.

But army troops managed later in the day to reopen all roads blocked by Arslan’s supporters.

Meanwhile, in the Bekaa, partisans of former minister Abdul Rahim Mrad blocked the al-Masnaa-Rashaya road with burning tires to protest the non-appointment of Mrad as a minister in the new cabinet.


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