Lebanese cabinet resigns

Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and his cabinet resigned today.

Hariri will not form the next government, said his office. The outgoing prime minister has led Lebanon for most of the time since the end of the civil war in 1990.

Hariri submitted his resignation to President Emile Lahoud during a brief meeting in the presidential palace in Beirut.

Lahoud is to hold consolations with MPs on the new government.

The resignation had been expected since parliament amended the constitution last month to extend Lahoud’s mandate for another three years.

A new cabinet was expected to be formed after the extension, but it has been delayed by disagreements between Hariri and Lahoud over its composition.