Outgoing Lebanese PM Hariri withdraws candidacy for post

BEIRUT – Outgoing Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri says he is withdrawing his candidacy for the premiership. The announcement comes nearly a month after he resigned amid ongoing protests as well as a severe economic and financial crisis.

In a statement issued Wednesday, he called on President Michel Aoun to quickly hold consultations with heads of parliamentary blocks to name a new prime minister.

Hariri submitted his government’s resignation on Oct. 29 in response to nationwide anti-government demonstrations that erupted two weeks earlier. They’ve since targeted corruption and mismanagement by the country’s ruling elite.

Hariri says he hopes withdrawing his candidacy will open the way for a solution to the political deadlock. He insists that a new government made up of experts is needed to get Lebanon out of its crisis.