| Lebanese President Michel Sleiman will launch mandatory consultations next Monday to form a new government after the resignation of ministers affiliated with Shiite armed group Hezbollah brought down Prime Minister Saad Hariri's cabinet.
"The consultations will start at noon (10:00 GMT) Monday," Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri told reporters after meeting the president.
Eleven ministers quit the cabinet after efforts led by Lebanon' s main power brokers Saudi Arabia and Syria reached a dead end. The Saudi-Syrian talks aimed to break the stalemate over a UN- backed court probing the 2005 assassination of Lebanese former Sunni Prime Minister Rafic Hariri.
The Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) is set to point the finger at Hezbollah, which slammed the court a U.S.-Israeli tool. While the indictment to be issued by the STL has drawn fears in recent months among the Lebanese, tension in the country was further heightened by the minister's resignation.
According to the country's constitution, Lebanon's president nominates a prime minister to form a new government after consultations with lawmakers.
The Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri was holding talks with U.S. President Barack Obama in Washington when his 14-month-old unity government collapsed. Saad Hariri is expected to travel to Ankara Thursday for talks with Turkish officials on the situation in Lebanon.
Hariri, who is the son of the slain politician, also held talks over the phone with Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmad Abul Gheit, who reiterated support for the Netherlands-based court.
Hezbollah Tuesday hinted it will not name Hariri to head the next government. Head of the party's parliamentary bloc Mohammad Raad said Hezbollah MPs and their allies would name a candidate " that has a history of (supporting resistance against Israel)."
Hezbollah has fought a deadly war with its arch foe Israel in 2006, which claimed the lives of 1,200 Lebanese civilians and 160 Israelis. |
