HIC Calls for Formation of All-Embracing Cabinet

The Higher Islamic Council called on Saturday for the formation of an all-embracing cabinet away from conditions and the counter-conditions imposed by the rival parties.

The council, headed by Grand Mufti Sheikh Mohammed Rashid Qabbani, expressed relief over the exerted efforts by the political foes to reach an acceptable cabinet lineup.

The members also urged for carrying out presidential elections within the constitutional deadline.

The government formation process has witnessed a political activity in an attempt to end the standstill since Prime Minister-designate Tammam Salam was appointed in April.

The 8-8-8 government lineup awaits that March 14 approval, while al-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc has set a series of questions regarding the cabinet's ministerial statement, the rotation of portfolios and the veto power.

The 8-8-8 formula divides ministers equally between the centrists and March 14 and 8 alliances, in which each get eight ministers with “decisive ministers” for the March 14 and 8 coalitions.

The HIC also denounced the ongoing bombings that targeted several areas in Beirut, warning of a “terrorist plot targeting Lebanon and its civil peace.”

“The dangerous situation must be confronted and the national interest must be prioritized,” the council said in a statement.

Lebanon has suffered a spate of bombings and clashes related to the war in neighboring Syria in recent months.

Concerning the recent assault against the Mufti, the council condemned the attack, calling on the competent authorities to investigate the matter.

Qabbani on December 29 attended the funeral of 16-year-old Mohammed Chaar, a youth killed during the December 27 Starco blast in downtown Beirut.

Mourners at the funeral were angered by his arrival and began chanting slogans against him, prompting members of the Internal Security Forces Intelligence Bureau's Strike Force to escort him out of the al-Khasheqji Mosque where the funeral was being held.

Qabbani considered that the protesters were seeking to “kill him” upon his arrival at the premises.

The Mufti's ties with al-Mustaqbal deteriorated last year when he met with a delegation from Hizbullah the same day the Special Tribunal for Lebanon indicted four party members in former Premier Rafik Hariri's February 2005 assassination.

Relations between the two sides were also shaken when the Mufti met with Syrian Ambassador Ali Abdul Karim Ali, whom al-Mustaqbal and the March 14 opposition alliance have on several occasions said should be expelled.