At the request of Hariri, Aoun again postponed consultations to form the government

The Lebanese presidency announced the postponement of the parliamentary consultations to assign a prime minister to form the government until next Thursday, at the request of Saad Hariri, the caretaker government expected to be assigned again to head the government.

The Lebanese Presidency said in a statement today, Monday, that Hariri, in a telephone call with President Michel Aoun, asked for the postponement of the consultations that were expected to take place today "for further consultations on the issue of forming the new government."

This is the second time that President Aoun has decided to form parliamentary consultations.

Al-Hariri had resigned from the prime minister on October 29, under the weight of protests calling for the departure of the political elite and accusing it of corruption and misrule over decades.

He said at a time when he will only return as prime minister of a government composed of technocrats with the aim of satisfying the protesters and allowing the government to tackle the crisis and attract foreign aid.

His political opponents, including Aoun and Hezbollah, say the government should include politicians alongside technocrats.

The sectarian quota in Lebanon requires that he be a Sunni Muslim prime minister, and Hariri is seen as the only candidate for the post after all efforts to find a replacement in the Sunni community have failed.

The fact that political forces agree to name a new head of government does not mean that its birth will be easy in a country whose political system is based on sectarian and political quotas, and the formation of the government often takes several months.

Street refused
On the street, many demonstrators refuse to assign Hariri to form a government again and consider him part of what they describe as the system of corruption that controls the country and drains its resources.

The demonstrators insist on the formation of a government of specialists independent of the entire political class, who hold them responsible for the deteriorating economic situation and its inability to find solutions to successive crises.

Violent clashes erupted during the past two nights between the security forces and the demonstrators who tried to reach a street leading to Nejmeh Square, where the parliament is located in the center of Beirut.

The Secretary-General of the Lebanese Red Cross said that their teams assisted 45 people on the spot, while 28 others were treated in hospitals. The majority of injuries are due to suffocation or cuts as a result of stone throwing.

Since last October 17, the Lebanese have continued to protest, demanding the departure of the political elite, fighting corruption, improving services, and providing aid to the poor.