UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged Lebanon to create an “inclusive government” to handle the country’s economic difficulties, after elections held over the weekend, his office said Monday.
Guterres “looks forward to the speedy establishment of an inclusive government that can finish the agreement with the International Monetary Fund and accelerate the execution of measures necessary to place Lebanon on the path to recovery,” his office said in a statement.
The UN chief also called on the country’s new parliament “to urgently implement all measures essential to stabilize the economy and improve governance.”
He highlighted the necessity for Lebanon’s “political leaders to work collaboratively with the greatest interest of Lebanon and the Lebanese people in mind.”
Lebanon’s largest parliamentary group, commanded by Hezbollah, appears to have suffered a defeat against the opposition and independents, according to partial results announced on Monday.
Turnout was particularly low in Sunni-dominated areas largely populated by Sunnis one of the primary communities in the country governed by a political system based on communal power-sharing.
