Berri Telephones Ahmadinejad: Government Formation Moving at Turtle Pace

Speaker Nabih Berri stated that the government formation in Lebanon is moving at “turtle pace”, noting however that Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati’s recent statements from Baabda are a positive sign that it will be established soon.

He told the daily An Nahar in remarks published on Sunday: “We hope the new government will live up to the Lebanese people’s expectations.”

Regarding the March 14 camp’s criticism against him over how he dealt with the developments in Abidjan, the speaker said: “Our handling of this issue protected the lives of 80,000 Lebanese expatriates and to those who make light of their lives, we say that they should halt such practices.”

“Leave the expatriates out of the divisions on the internal Lebanese scene, what you’re doing is enough,” he stressed.

Berri telephoned on Saturday Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara discussing the Lebanese expatriates’ contributions to the African country’s economy.

He also telephoned Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad thanking him for sending planes to evacuate expatriates from Abidjan.