Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Wednesday revealed that “new mechanisms” are being discussed in order to overcome the so-called Sunni obstacle that is delaying the formation of the new government.

“Everyone knows that it is necessary to form the government in order to confront all problems and challenges, especially the economic and social situations,” Berri said during the weekly Ain el-Tineh meeting.

Economy Ministry inspectors on Wednesday confiscated a neighborhood power generator in Sin el-Fil after its owner refused to install meters for subscribers, a day after a violating generator was seized in Hadath.

The inspectors were accompanied by State Security agents.

In light of a delayed government formation, caretaker Minister of Finance Ali Hassan Khalil denied media claims that wages for civil servants and retirees were unavailable, the National News Agency reported on Wednesday.

Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Walid al-Bukhari arrived in Beirut on Wednesday after being officially appointed by Saudi Arabia.

Although Hizbullah insists on the representation of Sunni MPs of March 8 in the government, it reportedly has no objection to naming a figure from outside the Consultative Gathering provided the six MPs accept this solution, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Wednesday.

President Michel Aoun chaired a meeting with the Higher Defense Council at Baabda Palace on Wednesday, the National News Agency reported.

Several roads were blocked Tuesday evening in the capital Beirut in protest at remarks voiced by ex-minister Wiam Wahhab against Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri.

The Traffic Management Center said protesters blocked the road between Qasqas and the airport, the Sports City road near Tariq al-Jedideh, the nearby Cola roundabout and the vital Corniche al-Mazraa highway.

Al-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc on Tuesday condemned what it called a “suspicious campaign” against Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri, stressing that his approach has “protected Lebanon in the most difficult circumstances.”

“The bloc emphasizes that the noble national course of the PMs Rafik and Saad Hariri cannot be reached by the insults of any political figure in Lebanon whoever he may be,” said the bloc in a statement issued after its weekly meeting.

The family of Nizar Zakka -- a Lebanese citizen and U.S. green card holder who has been detained in Iran since 2015 -- has called on the Lebanese state to give his case the same attention it has given to Carlos Ghosn’s arrest in Japan.

“As we value the speed in which the Lebanese state, represented by the Foreign Ministry, has acted in to follow up on Mr. Carlos Ghosn’s case, out of its duty towards its citizens whether they are Lebanese or of Lebanese origin, we reiterate our call for this political-diplomatic drive to involve the case of our son Nizar, who is arbitrarily detained in Iran,” the family said in a statement.

A Lebanese minister says some Syrian refugees who have returned home from Lebanon have been killed, detained or forced to join the military, leading to a slowdown in the return of Syrians residing in Lebanon.

Caretaker Minister of State for Refugee Affairs Mouein al-Merehbi told The Associated Press Tuesday that so far about 12,000 Syrian refugees have returned home since June.