The next Lebanese government has been formed, Prime Minister Najib Mikati announced on Friday.
In a speech after meeting President Michel Aoun in Baabda Palace, Mikati pledged to “rebuild Lebanon” with his new government, stressing that the government will receive the confidence vote of Parliament.
The government, Mikati said, will create a rescue plan “as soon as possible” to secure people’s needs.
The PM also pledged to hold the 2022 parliamentary elections on time, on May 8th.
The government announcement comes around six weeks after Mikati was appointed as PM-designate, succeeding Saad Hariri, who failed to form a government after nine months of being appointed to the position.
Lebanon’s previous government, headed by caretaker PM Hassan Diab, resigned in the aftermath of the Beirut Port Explosion in August 2020.
Since then, the international community has been calling for the formation of a rescue government in Lebanon, which is going through a crippling economic crisis and would need to enact pivotal reforms in order to unlock crucial international support.