BEIRUT // Saad Hariri, Lebanon's prime minister designate, yesterday described efforts to resolve a week-old political crisis that has hampered efforts to form a national unity cabinet as "good", leaving some hope that Lebanon could have a functioning government before the start of Ramadan at the end of the month.
Mr Hariri had been close to forming a cabinet after brokering a compromise with the Hizbollah-led opposition on allowing a minority veto of controversial legislation last week when a key ally announced he was leaving the coalition to chart an independent course. The defection of Druze leader Walid Jumblatt last week from the so-called "March 14" coalition sparked a nasty series of fights over whether he was actually joining the opposition alliance, or if he should still be granted his share of three seats in the 30-member cabinet.
Although Mr Jumblatt never indicated that he would vote with the opposition he helped defeat in June's parliamentary elections, many of his former allies accused him of treachery and the ensuing controversy threatened to derail Mr Hariri's efforts. But after Mr Hariri returned from an unscheduled holiday in the south of France, he immediately began a series of meetings with his allies and opponents to attempt to restart the cabinet talks. After the meeting, both men claimed their differences had been resolved and that Mr Jumblatt continued to support the cabinet allocation formula brokered with the opposition. The deal allows the majority 15 seats on the cabinet, 10 seats to the opposition and five seats will report directly to the president Michel Suleiman, who many see as a neutral figure.
"I stressed to premier-designate Hariri my full support for the formation of the cabinet based on a formula he deems appropriate," said Mr Jumblatt to reporters as he left Mr Hariri's palatial Beirut home. He added that he supported the 15-10-5 formula and respects the choices of the Lebanese voters, which was interpreted as support for the majority to continue to attempt to form a government. The fear that Mr Jumblatt might vote with the opposition would have dramatically reduced Mr Hariri's margin in parliament, making the formation of a functioning government difficult. But with Mr Jumblatt apparently willing to co-operate, Mr Hariri's supporters said the new challenge was the extravagant demands by Gen Michel Aoun, a leading Christian politician in the opposition movement.
Mr Aoun has demanded seats consistent with his performance in the popular vote, in which he won more support than any other single Christian party. Despite having rejected this demand, which would have given him seven seats on the cabinet, Mr Hariri is currently negotiating with Mr Aoun over who will control Lebanon's highly dysfunctional, yet incredibly lucrative, telecommunications ministry. It is these demands, say Mr Hariri's supporters, that have stalled the talks even more than the drama associated with Mr Jumblatt's defection.
"I'm expecting the formation of the government to be done before the end of the month of Ramadan," said the MP Ahmed Fatfat, a Hariri loyalist. "The obstacle in forming the government is only the high demands made by [Aoun]. The meeting that took place last night between Hariri and Jumblatt was positive and opened new horizons for the next stage of forming the government."
mprothero@thenational.ae
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
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T20 World Cup Qualifier fixtures
Tuesday, October 29
Qualifier one, 2.10pm – Netherlands v UAE
Qualifier two, 7.30pm – Namibia v Oman
Wednesday, October 30
Qualifier three, 2.10pm – Scotland v loser of qualifier one
Qualifier four, 7.30pm – Hong Kong v loser of qualifier two
Thursday, October 31
Fifth-place playoff, 2.10pm – winner of qualifier three v winner of qualifier four
Friday, November 1
Semi-final one, 2.10pm – Ireland v winner of qualifier one
Semi-final two, 7.30pm – PNG v winner of qualifier two
Saturday, November 2
Third-place playoff, 2.10pm
Final, 7.30pm
ACC%20T20%20Women%E2%80%99s%20Championship
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Cinco in numbers
Dh3.7 million
The estimated cost of Victoria Swarovski’s gem-encrusted Michael Cinco wedding gown
46
The number, in kilograms, that Swarovski’s wedding gown weighed.
1,000
The hours it took to create Cinco’s vermillion petal gown, as seen in his atelier [note, is the one he’s playing with in the corner of a room]
50
How many looks Cinco has created in a new collection to celebrate Ballet Philippines’ 50th birthday
3,000
The hours needed to create the butterfly gown worn by Aishwarya Rai to the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.
1.1 million
The number of followers that Michael Cinco’s Instagram account has garnered.
Common%20symptoms%20of%20MS
%3Cul%3E%0A%3Cli%3EFatigue%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3Enumbness%20and%20tingling%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3ELoss%20of%20balance%20and%20dizziness%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EStiffness%20or%20spasms%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3ETremor%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EPain%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EBladder%20problems%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EBowel%20trouble%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EVision%20problems%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EProblems%20with%20memory%20and%20thinking%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3C%2Ful%3E%0A
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
Maestro
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, second leg result:
Ajax 2-3 Tottenham
Tottenham advance on away goals rule after tie ends 3-3 on aggregate
Final: June 1, Madrid
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Something of a fashion anomaly, normcore is essentially a celebration of the unremarkable. The term was first popularised by an article in New York magazine in 2014 and has been dubbed “ugly”, “bland’ and "anti-style" by fashion writers. It’s hallmarks are comfort, a lack of pretentiousness and neutrality – it is a trend for those who would rather not stand out from the crowd. For the most part, the style is unisex, favouring loose silhouettes, thrift-shop threads, baseball caps and boyish trainers. It is important to note that normcore is not synonymous with cheapness or low quality; there are high-fashion brands, including Parisian label Vetements, that specialise in this style. Embraced by fashion-forward street-style stars around the globe, it’s uptake in the UAE has been relatively slow.
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
Pari
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Three stars
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Torbal Rayeh Wa Jayeh
Starring: Ali El Ghoureir, Khalil El Roumeithy, Mostafa Abo Seria
Stars: 3
Famous left-handers
- Marie Curie
- Jimi Hendrix
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- David Bowie
- Paul McCartney
- Albert Einstein
- Jack the Ripper
- Barack Obama
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- Joan of Arc
