Lebanon's Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati gestures as he speaks to the press after meeting with President Michel Aoun at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon, September 10, 2021. /Reuters
The Lebanese presidency announced on Friday that a new government has been formed, ending a 13-month stalemate in the crisis-torn country.
In an emotional speech after signing a decree with President Michel Aoun to form the new cabinet, Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati said he hoped to stop his country from collapsing and bring back prosperity.
He said the situation in the country was "difficult," adding that there were no reserves left for subsidies and that everyone should "tighten belts."
Lebanon has been run by a caretaker government since August 10, 2020 when caretaker Prime Minister Hassan Diab and his cabinet resigned en masse following an explosion at Beirut port that killed over 200 people and wounded thousands of others.
The country has been suffering from an unprecedented financial crisis that plunged 74 percent of its population into poverty, according to the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for West Asia.
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(With input from Xinhua, Reuters)