Lebanese protesters angered by announced designation of new PM – report

Protesters in Lebanon who have been demanding radical reform have reacted with anger to the reported designation of a new prime minister they regard as emblematic of a failed political system, AFP reported.

Ex-finance minister Mohammad Safadi has agreed to be Lebanon’s next PM if he wins the support of its major parties and the process to name him should begin on Monday, Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil told broadcaster MTV on Friday.

Demonstrators in his hometown of Tripoli rejected Safadi, and reportedly gathered in front of one of his properties to protest the nomination. Second city Tripoli has been one of the main hubs of the month-old protest movement, with nightly rallies in its main squares.

Outgoing PM Saad Hariri resigned on October 29, nearly two weeks into the unprecedented nationwide protests demanding the wholesale removal of a ruling elite seen as corrupt and incompetent.