New Lebanese President Joseph Aoun began parliamentary consultations Monday to designate a prime minister tasked with forming a government desperately needed to tackle major challenges in the crisis-hit country.
Caretaker premier Najib Mikati and Nawaf Salam, a favorite of anti-Hezbollah lawmakers who is the presiding judge at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, have emerged as the frontrunners.
The consultations, a constitutional requirement under Lebanon's sectarian power-sharing system, follow Aoun's election last week amid foreign pressure for swift progress -- particularly from the United States.
The eastern Mediterranean nation had been without a president since October 2022, run by a caretaker government amid a crushing economic crisis compounded by all-out war between Lebanese Iran-backed group Hezbollah and Israel.
By convention, Lebanon's prime minister is a Sunni Muslim.
Opposition lawmakers on Saturday had thrown their backing behind anti-Hezbollah lawmaker Fouad Makhzoumi, a wealthy businessman who has good foreign relations.
But on Monday he said he withdrew his candidacy to "make way for consensus between all who believe in the need for change around the name of Judge Nawaf Salam".
Aoun's consultations with political blocs got underway at 8:15 am (0615 GMT) with a meeting with deputy parliament speaker Elias Abu Saab, the official National News Agency said.
- 'Part of the accord' -
A source close to Hezbollah told AFP that both Hezbollah and powerful parliament speaker Nabih Berri's Amal movement supported Mikati.
Mikati, who has already formed three governments and has good relations with Lebanon's political parties and several foreign countries, has denied any prior arrangement exists for the naming of a PM.
One of the country's richest men, Mikati has headed the country in a caretaker capacity throughout the presidential vacuum.
Mikati said on the sidelines of the presidential vote on Thursday that he was ready to serve the country "if needed".
Whoever heads Lebanon's new government will face major challenges, including implementing reforms to satisfy international donors amid the country's worst economic crisis in its history.
They will also face the daunting task of reconstructing swathes of the country after the Israel-Hezbollah war and implementing the November 27 ceasefire agreement, which includes the thorny issue of disarming Hezbollah.
- Opposition to Mikati -
Other lawmakers have instead proposed International Court of Justice judge Salam, a highly respected former ambassador whose name frequently comes up in such consultations.
Late Sunday saw last-ditch attempts to unify opposition and independent positions, with the aim of rallying around Salam and blocking Mikati's path to the premiership.
Hezbollah's opponents see Mikati as part of an old political system that the group has within its grip.
After Aoun pledged a "new phase" for Lebanon in his inaugural speech, anti-Hezbollah Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea said that "like it or not, Mikati was from the previous lot".
According to Lebanon's constitution, the president designates the prime minister in consultation with the parliament speaker, choosing the candidate with the most votes during the consultations.
Nominating a premier does not guarantee a new government will be formed imminently.
The process has previously taken weeks or even months due to deep political divisions and horse-trading.
