Int’l Community Criticizes Lebanon’s Failure to Form New Government

Student protesters wave national flags as they protest against the government in front of the education ministry in Beirut, Lebanon, Nov. 7, 2019. (AP)
Student protesters wave national flags as they protest against the government in front of the education ministry in Beirut, Lebanon, Nov. 7, 2019. (AP)
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Int’l Community Criticizes Lebanon’s Failure to Form New Government

Student protesters wave national flags as they protest against the government in front of the education ministry in Beirut, Lebanon, Nov. 7, 2019. (AP)
Student protesters wave national flags as they protest against the government in front of the education ministry in Beirut, Lebanon, Nov. 7, 2019. (AP)

Representatives from the International Support Group for Lebanon (ISG) expressed surprise on Thursday at political forces for ignoring repeated calls to refrain from impeding the formation of a new government.

One ambassador of a European country hinted that the international community would issue a negative position if the parties do not agree on a new cabinet in two weeks. However, the ambassador did not reveal the nature of such stance.

Another ambassador of a powerful state and member of the ISG, spoke to Asharq Al-Awsat of international disappointment with the ongoing stalling in the cabinet formation process.

He attributed this stance to the parties’ “underestimation of the public position that UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon Jan Kubis conveyed to President Michel Aoun concerning the need to quickly form a government in light of the deteriorating local situation and regional instability following tension between the US and Iran.”

The envoy explained that Kubis “broke his silence” when he realized that whenever he demanded the speeding up of the formation of the cabinet, new obstacles would emerge.

This prompted him to adopt a more severe tone by saying it was "increasingly irresponsible" to keep Lebanon without a government.

The ambassador said the ISG members urge political forces to relinquish what they consider as “their shares” in the cabinet lineup because the country cannot endure additional deterioration on the financial, social and economic levels.

The members have also accused ruling powers of failing to take into consideration the demands of the popular protests.

The ambassador was reportedly informed that Kubis’ remarks were interpreted as meddling in Lebanon’s internal affairs. However, the envoy explained that the Special Coordinator represents the United Nations, which is an ISG member.

The Support Group for Lebanon was created eight years ago to support the country on the political and security levels.

Last December 19, Hassan Diab, a little-known academic and former education minister, was designated Lebanon’s premier, vowing to form a government quickly to pull the country out of its economic crisis.

Diab came to power after Saad Hariri resigned from the post on October 29, nearly two weeks into a nationwide cross-sectarian protest movement demanding the removal of a political elite seen as corrupt and incompetent.



Kurdish PKK Militants Burn Weapons in Iraq to Launch Disarmament

 Armed PKK fighters arrive ahead of a disarming ceremony in Sulaimaniya, Iraq, July 11, 2025, in this screengrab obtained from a handout video. KURDISTAN WORKERS PARTY MEDIA OFFICE/Handout via REUTERS
Armed PKK fighters arrive ahead of a disarming ceremony in Sulaimaniya, Iraq, July 11, 2025, in this screengrab obtained from a handout video. KURDISTAN WORKERS PARTY MEDIA OFFICE/Handout via REUTERS
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Kurdish PKK Militants Burn Weapons in Iraq to Launch Disarmament

 Armed PKK fighters arrive ahead of a disarming ceremony in Sulaimaniya, Iraq, July 11, 2025, in this screengrab obtained from a handout video. KURDISTAN WORKERS PARTY MEDIA OFFICE/Handout via REUTERS
Armed PKK fighters arrive ahead of a disarming ceremony in Sulaimaniya, Iraq, July 11, 2025, in this screengrab obtained from a handout video. KURDISTAN WORKERS PARTY MEDIA OFFICE/Handout via REUTERS

Thirty Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants burned their weapons at the mouth of a cave in northern Iraq on Friday, marking a symbolic but significant step toward ending a decades-long insurgency against Türkiye.

Footage from the ceremony showed the fighters, half of them women, queuing to place AK-47 assault rifles, bandoliers and other guns into a large grey cauldron. Flames later engulfed the black gun shafts pointed to the sky, as Kurdish, Iraqi and Turkish officials watched nearby, Reuters reported.

The PKK, locked in conflict with the Turkish state and outlawed since 1984, decided in May to disband, disarm and end its separatist struggle after a public call to do so from its long-imprisoned leader Abdullah Ocalan.

After a series of failed peace efforts, the new initiative could pave the way for Ankara to end an insurgency that has killed over 40,000 people, burdened the economy and wrought deep social and political divisions in Türkiye and the wider region.

President Tayyip Erdogan said he hoped the PKK's dissolution would bolster Turkish security and regional stability. "May God grant us success in achieving our goals on this path we walk for the security of our country, the peace of our nation, and the establishment of lasting peace in our region," he said on X.

Friday's ceremony was held at the entrance of the Jasana cave in the town of Dukan, 60 km (37 miles) northwest of Sulaymaniyah in the Kurdistan region of Iraq's north.

The fighters, in beige military fatigues, were flanked by four commanders including senior PKK figure Bese Hozat, who read a statement in Turkish declaring the group's decision to disarm.

"We voluntarily destroy our weapons, in your presence, as a step of goodwill and determination," she said, before another commander read the same statement in Kurdish.

Helicopters hovered overhead, with dozens of Iraqi Kurdish security forces surrounding the mountainous area, a Reuters witness said.

The ceremony was attended by Turkish and Iraqi intelligence figures, officials of Iraq's Kurdistan regional government and senior members of Türkiye's pro-Kurdish DEM party - which also played a key role this year facilitating the PKK's disarmament decision.

It was unclear when further handovers would take place.

A senior Turkish official said the arms handover marked an "irreversible turning point" in the peace process, while another government source said ensuing steps would include the legal reintegration of PKK members into society in Türkiye and efforts to heal communities and promote reconciliation.

The PKK has been based in northern Iraq after being pushed well beyond Türkiye's southeastern frontier in recent years. Türkiye's military carries out regular strikes on PKK bases in the region and established several military outposts there.

The end of NATO member Türkiye's conflict with the PKK could have consequences across the region, including in neighboring Syria where the United States is allied with Syrian Kurdish forces that Ankara deems a PKK offshoot.

Washington and Ankara want those Kurds to quickly integrate with Syria's security structure, which has been undergoing reconfiguration since the fall in December of autocratic President Bashar al-Assad. PKK disarmament could add to this pressure, analysts say.

The PKK, DEM and Ocalan have all called on Erdogan's government to address Kurdish demands for more rights in regions where Kurds form a majority, particularly Türkiye's southeast where the insurgency was concentrated.

In a rare online video published on Wednesday, Ocalan - whose large image was shown at the weapons ceremony - also urged Türkiye's parliament to set up a commission to oversee disarmament and manage the broader peace process.

Ankara has taken steps toward forming the commission, while the DEM and Ocalan have said that legal assurances and certain mechanisms were needed to smooth the PKK's transition into democratic politics.

Omer Celik, spokesman for Erdogan's AK Party, said the ceremony marked a first step toward full disarmament and a "terror-free Türkiye", adding this must be completed "in a short time".

Erdogan has said the disarmament will enable the rebuilding of Türkiye's southeast.

Türkiye spent nearly $1.8 trillion over the past five decades combating terrorism, Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek has said.