Hezbollah says Lebanon must form government quickly

Hezbollah yesterday called for a Lebanese government to be formed as quickly as possible, weeks after the country elected a president and named a prime minister.

Prime Minister-designate Saad Al-Hariri said last month his efforts to form the government faced “stumbling blocks”, testing hopes he could quickly steer the country out of political crisis.

“Everyone is responsible for looking for ways out, for solutions, and to cooperate for us to reach the necessary conclusion on the government,” Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said, referring to Lebanon’s political factions. The “government…must be formed as soon as possible.”

The powerful Shia movement is not only an Iranian proxy, but it is also an ally of incumbent President Michel Aoun, elected in November to a presidency that had been vacant for two-and-a-half years because of political deadlock.

Tensions have arisen among rival leaders over portfolio distribution, the number of ministries in the new cabinet and an electoral law which needs to be passed for a parliamentary election to be held in 2017.

Lebanon urgently needs effective government to address economic and development issues such as infrastructure and refuse disposal, leading many Lebanese activists to complain about zbaleh, or garbage, through songs and demonstrations.

Tensions have been exacerbated by the war in neighbouring Syria, where Shia Hezbollah is fighting in support of President Bashar Al-Assad’s regime. Nasrallah said a victory for Assad in the city of Aleppo was imminent.

Hezbollah recently conducted military parades in the Syrian city of Qusayr, showcasing US-made military equipment that was suspected to have been passed onto them by the Lebanese military, an institution Hezbollah has infiltrated over the years.

Nasrallah justified his group’s intervention into Syria, following Iran’s instructions, due to the apparent “resistance” against Israel. However, many Arabs, formerly supportive of Hezbollah, have since abandoned it and accused it of being a sectarian militant organisation.

Hezbollah is a designated terrorist organisation by many countries, including the United States.