Mikati said that he hoped cabinet sessions would resume as soon as possible and stressed that tackling the economic crisis requires everyone’s cooperation. (Credit: Dalati and Nohra)
BEIRUT — Prime Minister Najib Mikati said Wednesday that the resumption of cabinet sessions, which are currently stalled, is necessary for Lebanon to implement reforms and to continue on the path of cooperation with the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
Here's what we know:
• “Ministerial meetings and workshops are in place to complete the required files … and put matters on the right track, but the foundation remains in resuming cabinet sessions, starting with the steps required to resolve the new dispute with the Gulf countries,” Mikati said from the Grand Serail.
• Mikati said that he hoped cabinet sessions would resume as soon as possible and stressed that tackling the economic crisis requires everyone’s cooperation.
• Lebanon’s cabinet has not met for more than one month. The last session adjourned on Oct. 12 after a heated discussion in which ministers could not come to a united stance regarding investigating Judge Tarek Bitar's conduct in the Beirut port explosion probe. Hezbollah and its allies have insisted that Lebanon’s cabinet will only resume meeting when Bitar is removed from his role.
• Meanwhile, Lebanon’s economic meltdown continues to deepen, further exacerbated by a worsening diplomatic row with Saudi Arabia, which imposed a blanket ban on Lebanese imports at the end of October.