Aoun”s Visit to Hariri Out of Question as Hizbullah Seeks to Soften Political Atmosphere
Government formation entered its third month with no signs of a deal on a Cabinet lineup as contacts between Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri and Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun remained frozen.
"No formula, no names, no breakthrough with the beginning of the third month of the crisis," read An-Nahar newspaper”s front-page headline.
The daily As-Safir, however, asked in its front-page article: "Will Hariri visit Aoun or vise versa?"
It quoted sources close to Aoun as saying that the former army general "insists on receiving an apology from the other team after attacks against him took on a personal tone."
The sources said that despite the difficulty of such a meeting, a get-together could still take place if Hariri visits Aoun as part of his duties as a premier-designate.
Hariri sources, however, rejected the idea. They told As-Safir "this issue (of visiting Aoun) is out of the question. Hariri is a PM and logically people would visit him and not vise versa."
While Al-Liwaa daily did not rule out the possibility of a meeting between Hariri and Aoun on the sidelines of an iftar in Baabda next Tuesday, Ad-Diyar newspaper said Aoun has turned down the invitation for dinner at the Presidential Palace.
Meanwhile, Hizbullah resumed efforts to soften the political atmosphere and bridge the gap between Qoreitmen and Rabiyeh.
Al-Liwaa said a Hizbullah delegation has been in touch with Hariri in an effort to remove obstacles facing formation of a national unity government and narrow the differences between Aoun and the premier-designate.