Libanon

Hundreds of Lebanese marched on Saturday through the streets of the capital and the main northern city to reject a new government named to deal with an economic crisis, which they say lacks a popular mandate.

More than a month after he was designated with backing from the powerful Shiite movement Hezbollah and nearly three after his predecessor Saad Hariri resigned under pressure from the street, Prime Minister Hassan Diab's cabinet of 20 ministers was announced. … The new cabinet is made up of little-known figures, many of them academics and former advisers, but protesters were quick to argue that the absence of the biggest names in Lebanon's widely reviled hereditary political elite was but a smokescreen.

Protesters in Lebanon have again taken to the streets amid an economy in tatters and political disagreements over the creation of a new government.

Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri has announced he would not seek the top post again, on the eve of twice-delayed talks to name a new prime minister that were expected to lead to his selection.

Lebanon's leading Sunni Muslim politician, Saad Hariri, has re-emerged as a candidate for prime minister as businessman Samir Khatib withdrew his candidacy to lead a government that must tackle an acute economic crisis.

[…] He said on Tuesday that he hoped his decision would prompt parliamentary blocs to quickly agree a replacement.

The legislative session was supposed to address proposed new laws some protesters say do not address their demands. For more than a month, rallies have been held every day in Lebanon against government corruption and financial crisis. Protesters are calling for jobs, electricity, health care and security, and for the entire political class to step down.

Lebanon's banks and schools were shut on Tuesday in a new wave of disruption as politicians struggled to agree on a new government to steer the country out of its worst economic crisis since the 1975-90 civil war. The top U.N. official in Lebanon called for the urgent formation of a cabinet made up of people known for their competence, which he said would be in a better position to appeal for international support.

For weeks, Lebanon has been rocked by anti-government protests, the largest the country has seen in more than a decade. The demonstrations have cut across sectarian lines - a rare phenomenon since the country's devastating civil war ended - and involved people from all sectors of society.