Mikati Determined to Form New Lebanese Govt Despite Obstacles

Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati gestures as he attends an interview with Reuters at the government headquarters in downtown Beirut, Lebanon September 30, 2022. (Reuters)
Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati gestures as he attends an interview with Reuters at the government headquarters in downtown Beirut, Lebanon September 30, 2022. (Reuters)
TT
20

Mikati Determined to Form New Lebanese Govt Despite Obstacles

Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati gestures as he attends an interview with Reuters at the government headquarters in downtown Beirut, Lebanon September 30, 2022. (Reuters)
Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati gestures as he attends an interview with Reuters at the government headquarters in downtown Beirut, Lebanon September 30, 2022. (Reuters)

Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati stressed on Tuesday his determination to proceed with the cabinet formation process despite the many obstacles in his way.

“We are determined to continue work according to the constitution and the nation’s best interest; no one will be allowed to sabotage and obstruct the constitutional process,” Mikati said at the launch of a youth forum in Beirut.

The PM hoped that parliament will succeed in electing a new president within the constitutional deadline, because the existing challenges require cooperation and integration among constitutional institutions.

Last week parliament failed to elect a new head of state to replace President Michel Aoun whose term ends on Oct. 31. Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said he would call lawmakers to convene again once they reach consensus over a candidate.

Mikati warned against suspicious attempts aimed at obstructing the implementation of the Taif Accord, which he said helped end the 1975-90 civil war and restore state institutions.

The accord may not be perfect, “but it is at least better than chaos and demagogy,” he added.

The agreement is the “natural framework” that can bring together the Lebanese people under common values, he stated, while stressing the need to implement all of its articles to achieve the higher national interest.

He also suggested that the pact could be adjusted to current times, while preserving its main goal of securing coexistence between the Lebanese people.



Israeli Soldiers Kill Palestinian Man in West Bank

A picture taken in the village of Turmus Ayya near Ramallah city shows the nearby Israeli Shilo settlement in the background, in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2024. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)
A picture taken in the village of Turmus Ayya near Ramallah city shows the nearby Israeli Shilo settlement in the background, in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2024. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)
TT
20

Israeli Soldiers Kill Palestinian Man in West Bank

A picture taken in the village of Turmus Ayya near Ramallah city shows the nearby Israeli Shilo settlement in the background, in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2024. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)
A picture taken in the village of Turmus Ayya near Ramallah city shows the nearby Israeli Shilo settlement in the background, in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2024. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)

Palestinian authorities said Israeli troops killed a 55-year-old man in the north of the occupied West Bank on Thursday -- an incident the Israeli army said involved a stabbing attack.

The Ramallah-based health ministry said the body in charge of coordination with Israel informed it that soldiers "shot and killed" the man in Rummanah, near Jenin, in the morning.

The Israeli military said separately that troops deployed in the village "neutralised" a man after he stabbed and "moderately injured" a soldier, AFP reported.

The army generally uses the term "neutralised" after killing someone.

Violence in the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967, has soared since the Hamas attack of October 2023.

A 12-year-old Palestinian boy died Thursday of wounds suffered during an army raid near the West Bank town of Nablus last week, the health ministry said.

Since October 7, 2023, Israeli troops or settlers have killed at least 951 Palestinians, including many militants, the ministry said.

Advertisement - Scroll to Continue

Over the same period, at least 35 Israelis have been killed in Palestinian attacks or during Israeli military operations, according to Israeli figures.