Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati stressed on Friday that he is seeking to form a government that would rise up to the expectations of all the Lebanese.

He said during a popular gathering in the northern city of Tripoli: "We ask for forgiveness over the delay in the Cabinet formation because we want to establish a government that works for the whole of Lebanon."

The task of Premier-designate Najib Miqati to form the new government has become more difficult as President Michel Suleiman continued to hold onto the interior ministry portfolio which Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun is demanding as part of his share in the cabinet.

Speaker Nabih Berri’s sources told As Safir daily that the speaker stressed to Miqati during their meeting on Wednesday to speed up the government formation process. However, Miqati’s sources said no major progress was made in solving the deadlock over the interior ministry.

Deep rifts opened in Moammar Gadhafi's regime, with Libyan government officials at home and abroad resigning, air force pilots defecting and a bloody crackdown on protest in the capital of Tripoli, where cars and buildings were burned. Gadhafi went on state TV early Tuesday to attempt to show he was still in charge.

World leaders have expressed outrage at the "vicious forms of repression" used against the demonstrators.

Lebanese aviation authorities have reportedly refused to give the permission for a private Libyan jet with 10 people on board to land at Rafik Hariri international airport.

As Safir daily said Tuesday that the plane was due to take off from Tripoli’s airport before midnight but Lebanese authorities asked Libya to unveil the identity of the 10 people before allowing the jet to land in Lebanon.

Caretaker Minister of Economy and Trade Mohammed Safadi stated on Saturday that he voted for Najib Miqati for the premiership out of Lebanon’s interest and the safety of its people.

He said before his visitors in Tripoli: “I voted for him and stand by him over his desire to maintain Lebanon and its democratic system, as well as his keenness to bolster Tripoli’s position in the country.”

British Ambassador Frances Guy said she hoped for the formation of a national unity cabinet and hinted that the March 14 alliance was still the parliamentary majority despite the nomination of a Hizbullah-backed candidate to the premier’s post.

During a visit to As Safir daily’s office in the northern port city of Tripoli, Guy said she hoped for the formation of a “national cabinet” and stressed “nothing has changed on the ground because the results of the elections are still the same and haven’t changed.”

Outgoing Premier Saad Hariri denounced on Tuesday violent incidents that erupted during protests by his supporters against the appointment of Najib Miqati to head the new government.

Demonstrators in Sunni stronghold Tripoli attacked and burned a car of al-Jazeera television, and ransacked the office of MP Mohammed Safadi.

MPs Najib Miqati, Minister Mohammed Safadi, Ahmed Karami, and Qassem Abdelaziz met Sunday to discuss the latest developments in Lebanon given the parliamentary consultations to appoint a new prime minister scheduled for Monday and Tuesday.

They warned in a statement after the meeting that developments in Lebanon are threatening the creation of a "dangerous national divide," holding officials responsible for reaching the necessary solutions to end the crisis "to steer Lebanon away from the possibilities of internal collapse."

A grenade exploded at a market in the northern city of Tripoli on Saturday, a security official said, in the second such blast in the area in as many days.

The device hurled by unidentified assailants went off in Souk al-Qameh on a road between the rival neighborhoods of Bab al-Tebbaneh and Jabal Mohsen, the official told Agence France Presse on condition of anonymity.

Eyes are turned to four Tripoli MPs whose decision on whether to name the March 8 or the March 14 nominee for the premiership would play an important role in deciding the fate of the government.

Former PM Najib Miqati, Minister Mohammed Safadi, Ahmed Karami and Qassem Abdelaziz are expected to meet on Saturday to announce their final stance from parliamentary consultations that will be held on Monday and Tuesday.