Hizbullah Central Council member Sheikh Nabil Qaouq on Sunday said that hisQaouq: We Want Govt. that Wins Confidence of People on Streets, in Homes

Hizbullah Central Council member Sheikh Nabil Qaouq on Sunday said that his party wants a government that would “win the confidence of people present on the streets and in their homes.”

Caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s will not change his stance on the need to form a government of experts that would be able to confront the economic and social challenges, sources close to him said.

“Should he be designated to form the new government, PM Hariri will seek to form an integrated team comprising figures who have expertise,” LBCI TV quoted the Center House sources as saying.

Senior al-Mustaqbal Movement official ex-MP Mustafa Alloush has hinted that caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri will not reject his re-nomination for the PM post in Monday’s binding parliamentary consultations.

“Hariri does not want to dodge his responsibilities in these critical moments,” Alloush said in a TV interview.

Unknown individuals overnight vandalized two offices belonging to the Free Patriotic Movement and al-Mustaqbal Movement in the northern district of Akkar, the National News Agency said.

NNA said the FPM’s office in the Akkar town of al-Joumeh was attacked around 3:00 am.

Caretaker Interior Minister Raya al-Hassan on Sunday said she has ordered a probe into the fierce overnight clashes between protesters and riot police in central Beirut.

“I was concerned, saddened and astounded as I followed up throughout the night yesterday on the confrontations in the vicinity of parliament and on Beirut’s streets, which led to clashes between security forces and citizens and injuries on both sides,” al-Hassan said in a statement.

Riot police clashed with anti-government protesters in Beirut late Saturday, firing tear gas heavily to prevent them from breaching barricades near parliament, ahead of talks next week to appoint a new premier. 

Lebanon has been swept by unprecedented nationwide protests since October 17, demanding the complete overhaul of a political class deemed inept and corrupt.

Qatari Finance Minister Ali el-Emadi said on Saturday that his country will stand by Lebanon during its current economic crisis, media reports said.

Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea said on Saturday that his party will not participate in the new government but will take part in the consultations with President Michel Aoun to name a new PM in Baabda on Monday.

“The Lebanese Forces will not take part in the new government but we will participate in the binding parliamentary consultations to name a new premier,” Geagea told reporters after a meeting with Ghattas Khoury, adviser to caretaker PM Saad Hariri.

A U.S. diplomat stressed on Saturday that any party getting involved with financing Hizbullah will be subject to sanctions.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday announced that the U.S. stands by the Lebanese people in the face of “corruption and terrorism,” shortly after Washington slapped sanctions on three individuals and several firms allegedly linked to Hizbullah.

“We stand with the people of Lebanon to fight against corruption and terrorism. Today we designated two prominent Lebanese businessmen whose illicit financial activity supports Hizbullah,” Pompeo tweeted.