Hariri Fires More Mustaqbal Officials as Nader Hariri Quits
Prime Minister Saad Hariri has sacked two more al-Mustaqbal Movement officials, the movement said on Sunday, hours after the premier's chief of staff Nader Hariri submitted his resignation.
Mustaqbal's general coordinator for elections, Wissam Hariri, and the head of the follow-up dept. at the movement leader's office, Maher Abu al-Khudoud, were relieved of their duties in connection with Mustaqbal's peformance in the latest parliamentary elections, the movement said in a statement.
Hariri had on Saturday dissolved his movement's electoral affairs committee and electoral campaigning body as well as Mustaqbal's regional departments in Beirut, West Bekaa, Rashaya, Central Bekaa, Koura and Zgharta.
The development was followed by the reaignation of Hariri’s chief of staff, Nader Hariri.
Nader Hariri "has resigned from all his functions at the office of Prime minister Hariri," the office said in a statement.
PM Hariri thanked Nader Hariri for "his efforts throughout his tenure and wished him success in everything he aspires to," the office added.
"It was decided to appoint Mr. Mohammed Mnaimneh as acting chief of staff of Prime Minister Hariri," it said.
Hariri admitted Monday that his al-Mustaqbal Movement had lost a third of its seats in parliament following the country's first general election in nine years, while noting that it faced “a scheme to eliminate it from political life.”
Hariri said the results credit his movement with 21 of parliament's 128 seats, a drop from the 33 it controlled in the outgoing legislature.
Hariri -- and other senior politicians -- blamed an unexpectedly weak voter turnout on a new electoral law which appears to have confused or disappointed voters.
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