Saad Hariri postpones announcing candidates list for third time
Further consultations to be held

BEIRUT: Saad Hariri, the son of slain former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, stated that the announcement of his Beirut candidates’ list will be postponed once more for the sake of national unity. Hariri, who was speaking at an electoral rally held at the Beirut Development Association in Verdun Thursday night, also reaffirmed his pledge to preserving harmony and consensus among all Lebanese.

He said: “If [Rafik] Hariri has given his blood, then we can sacrifice one or two days before announcing the list for the sake of national unity and the people who participated in the March 14 demonstration.”

He stressed the importance of preserving the achievement of unity which was attained during the March 14 unity rally.

“March 14 was a big day for Lebanon. There are some people who want to destroy that day,” he said, “We want to preserve it.”  

Those in attendance included MPs from the Beirut Dignity Parliamentary Bloc, Hizbullah’s candidate in Beirut, Amin Shery and others.

This week, Hariri delayed the announcement of his electoral list twice, in order to conduct more consultations with opposition factions. Hariri insisted on his commitment to holding the elections on time, saying “We do not support those who are attempting to postpone

the elections.” Earlier this week, Hariri had told thousands of supporters at his home in Qoreitem that he will carry his father’s torch and run in one of Beirut’s three constituencies. He had initially planned to announce his list Tuesday evening. On Friday, Hariri also received the Chief of Army Intelligence Brigadier George Khoury in Qoreitem.