Cabinet holds much awaited session

The Cabinet met on Saturday morning at the Baabda Presidential Palace, after rival Druze politicians reconciled to end a crisis that has paralyzed the government.

This as sources told LBCI that a meeting was held prior to the session between President Michel Aoun, Defense Minister Elias Bou Saab and Minister of State for Refugee Affairs Saleh al-Gharib.

The standoff between Druze politicians Walid Jumblatt and Talal Arslan’s political parties was sparked by a shooting in the Chouf mountains on June 30 in which two aides of a government minister, Saleh al-Gharib, an ally of Arslan, were killed.
 
Gharib declared it an assassination attempt, for which his allies held Jumblatt's party responsible.
 
Jumblatt's party says it was an exchange of fire initiated by Gharib's entourage in which two Jumblatt supporters were also wounded.
 
The sides have been at odds over which court should deal with the case.
 
With both sides represented in Hariri's cabinet, the government was unable to convene, complicating efforts to enact reforms that are urgently needed to steer the country away from financial crisis.