Hariri Begins Consultations on Cabinet Lineup

PM-designate Saad Hariri began consultations with MPs on Friday to form a cabinet one day after President Michel Aoun assigned him for the task.

Hariri first met with Speaker Nabih Berri at the parliament.

Three-time Lebanese prime minister, Hariri was renamed to the post Thursday to create a reform-orientated cabinet that can lift the country out of its worst economic crisis in decades.

Hariri garnered 65 votes majority during the binding parliamentary consultations between the President and lawmakers, while 53 abstained from naming anyone.

Immediately after Aoun named him, Hariri vowed to form a cabinet of experts, in line with conditions set by French President Emmanuel Macron to help rescue the corruption-ridden country from crisis.

Cabinet formation is often a drawn-out process in Lebanon, where a complex governing system seeks to maintain a precarious balance between its various political and religious communities.