Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said that some of the obstacles that are delaying the formation of the new government have not been resolved despite the “major and important progress” of the past few days.
“There is major and important progress in the cabinet formation process but matters related to portfolios and names are still pending,” said Nasrallah in a televised speech during a Hezbollah ceremony.
“Everyone is awaiting answers and we're concerned with this last part,” he added.
Noting that “it is wrong to link between the developments in Lebanon and Iraq,” Nasrallah emphasized that “Iran is not interfering in the issue of the Lebanese government.”
“The cabinet formation process is in the hands of President (Michel) Aoun and PM-designate (Saad) Hariri,” Nasrallah stressed, adding that Hizbullah is not interfering in “the distribution of portfolios and shares.”
“There are claims that I sat with (Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran) Bassil and informed him of the need to form the government through offering concessions before the US sanctions on Iran enter into force. This meeting did not happen and these remarks were not voiced. We do not impose our will on the FPM, the PM-designate or any of the political forces,” Nasrallah went on to say.
“It is clear that there is great optimism and important positivities in the cabinet formation process, but we do not advise anyone to set timeframes, because some obstacles and issues might arise all of a sudden,” the Hezbollah chief added.
He underlined that there is a need to form the government seeing as “Lebanon needs it economically, socially and politically.”
“The mindset should remain in this context and should not exceed it to settling scores,” Nasrallah urged.
And noting that the “main obstacle” is the “failure to agree on unified standards for the formation process,” Nasrallah called on officials to “show modesty.”
"I tell the Saudi rulers that now is the right time to take a bold and brave stance and stop the war on Yemen... The international cover for their war on Yemen has started to crumble, especially after (Khashoggi's) incident. The kingdom's image in the world has never been worse throughout 100 years," he added.
Nasrallah said it has become almost certain that Khashoggi was abducted, tortured, killed and dismembered with a saw inside the consulate.
There is no doubt that the rulers of Saudi Arabia and America are in a difficult situation due to the case of Khashoggi's disappearance, he concluded.
LR/PR
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