WRAP PM consults leading politicians on new government ADDS more

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• published: 21 Jul 2015
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SHOTLIST 1. Exterior of parliament 3. Arrival of convoy of Prime Minister-designate Fuad Saniora 4. Various of Saniora walking in to parliament 5. Saniora meeting parliament speaker Nabih Berri 6. Saniora 7. Berri 8. Saniora and Berri seated 9. Hussein el-Husseini, member of parliament, arriving 10. Saniora meeting Husseini 11. Husseini 12. Saniora 13. Member of parliament Ali Hassan Khalil (right) talking to MP Michel El-Murr (left) 14.SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Farid Makari, Lebanese member of parliament "We are calling upon the government to prepare the political and the security situations for carrying out the elections that should be free from the pressure of weapons." 15. Berri leaving 16. Hezbollah MPs shaking hands with parliamentary officials 17. Pan of Hezbollah members of parliament meeting Saniora 18. Hezbollah member of parliament Mohammad Raad and Saniora 19. Close up of Raad 20. Close up of Saniora 21. Hezbollah members of parliament Amin Cherri and Pierre Serhal 22. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Mohammad Raad, Hezbollah member of parliament: "Lebanon, after the Doha agreement, is entering a new phase which requires political and governmental performances that reflect the national partnership to preserve stability for our country and the ability to develop and progress." 23. Member of parliament Saad Hariri entering parliament STORYLINE Lebanon's Prime Minister-designate Fuad Saniora on Friday began consultations with heads of parliamentary blocs on forming a new national unity cabinet in line with an Arab League-brokered deal that ended a long political crisis. Saniora's two-day consultations came after new President Michel Suleiman asked him on Wednesday to form a new government, despite reservations by the Hezbollah-led opposition. After Saniora ends his consultations on Saturday, he is to meet Suleiman again to discuss a possible line-up of the new cabinet. The president must approve the new body before it is officially announced. "We are calling upon the government to prepare the political and the security situations for carrying out the elections that should be free from the pressure of weapons," member of parliament Farid Makari said after meeting Saniora. Saniora, whose government survived a crippling dispute with the Hezbollah-led opposition for more than a year, was named by 68 out of 128 lawmakers as a choice for prime minister. However, the opposition said it was against Saniora's reappointment, calling him unacceptable and a hindrance to national reconciliation. Hezbollah members of parliament were amongst those arriving for consultations with Saniora at the parliament on Friday. "Lebanon, after the Doha agreement, is entering a new phase which requires political and governmental performances that reflects the national partnership to preserve stability for our country and the ability to develop and progress," Hezbollah MP Mohammad Raad said. Hezbollah's 14-member bloc in parliament had indicated they wanted another candidate for the post of prime minister who would reassure the group it could hold on to its weapons. The opposition considers Saniora a provocative figure who has rejected power-sharing in the past and they have often accused him of serving US interests in Lebanon. However, the opposition controls 58 seats in the 128-member legislature and cannot outvote the majority's candidate, which practically ensured that Saniora would get the post. Under Lebanon's sectarian power-sharing system, the post of prime minister goes to a Sunni Muslim. The majority is headed by Sunnis while the opposition is led by Shiites. You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/d6869b6be4566ab2406a48ea60239b7d Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork