Hariri Says Won't Give Aoun 7 Seats, Denies Infringing on Christian Rights

Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri stressed Sunday that it is “impossible” to grant President Michel Aoun’s camp seven seats, or a one-third-plus-one share, in the new government.

“The President is demanding a seat for the Tashnag Party that would be separate from his share, considering that they don't belong to his political camp, but this is impossible, seeing as they always vote with him in parliament and they are known to be part of his political camp,” Hariri said in a televised speech marking the 16th anniversary of ex-PM Rafik Hariri’s assassination.

“After 14 rounds of consultations and attempts to find solutions with Mr. President, I submitted to him a draft line-up of 18 specialist, nonpartisan ministers capable of carrying out the needed reforms as a unified team... and yes there is no ‘blocking one-third’ in this line-up,” Hariri added.

He also denied “infringing on the rights of Christians” in the current cabinet formation process.

“Rafik Hariri was martyred while saying that the counting had stopped and that Christians constitute half of the state regardless of numbers, and today we repeat: we have stopped counting and it is not Saad Rafik Hariri who gets accused of encroaching on the rights of Christians,” Hariri emphasized.

He added that Christian rights are “simply the rights of all Lebanese.”

“Their rights are to stop the collapse, rebuild Beirut and end the disaster. Their rights can be achieved through reforms, through changing the work method and through a forensic audit of the central bank and all institutions, administrations and ministries,” Hariri explained.

Noting that there is a “chance” to fix things in the country, Hariri underlined that “according to the initiative of the friend President Emmanuel Macron,” only a government of “nonpartisan specialists” can achieve the “needed reforms.”

“Otherwise, no one is willing to help and no one will help, and the collapse will, continue, God forbid, until the major explosion,” the PM-designate warned.

He also emphasized that “there can be no exit from the crisis without the Arabs and the international community and without a profound reconciliation with the Arab brothers.”

“I’m visiting Arab states and countries in the region and the world to rally support for Lebanon and mend ties, especially Arab relations, so that the solution can begin quickly once the government is formed, and it will be formed,” Hariri added.

Separately, Hariri warned that the “series of assassinations” in Lebanon must stop or else “there will be a major problem in the country.”

“A few months ago, the STL issued a verdict against Salim Ayyash, one of the killers of martyr premier Rafik Hariri. This verdict will be implemented and Salim Ayyash will be handed over, no matter how long it takes,” Hariri said.

“What’s more important is that the series of assassinations must stop and it will stop, or else there will be a major problem in the country,” he added, citing the latest assassination of prominent anti-Hizbullah activist and researched Lokman Slim.