Lebanon: Mikati Assigned to Form Gov't to Secure IMF Deal

On Thursday Lebanon's Najib Mikati has been ordered to form a government after being named prime minister, to mainly secure a deal with the IMF, that the country is yearning for.

The PM has urged fractious politicians to set aside differences to secure an IMF deal, which as he stated was the the 'only chance to save the country' from financial breakdown.

The billionaire who led three previous governments said Lebanon had no time to "drown in the conditions and demands" of groups competing for ministerial positions.

"We are facing the challenge of either a complete collapse or a gradual salvation," Mikati said, referring to the International Monetary Fund agreement that promises $3 billion in support, on the condition of reforms long-delayed by Lebanon's political elite.

The financial meltdown has dumped the currency by more than 90%, spread poverty, crippled the financial system, and froze depositors of their savings, in the most destabilizing crisis in Lebanon since the 1975-90 civil war.

He urged Parliament to approve laws referred to it by the previous government that would pave the way for a final agreement with the International Monetary Fund, including amendments to bank secrecy rules and capital controls.

Mikati was nominated by 54 out of 128 deputies in parliament, including Hezbollah, in consultations convened by President Michel Aoun yet, with splits running deep among the Lebanese elite, it is widely believed Mikati would struggle to form a  new government.