France is to host an aid conference for Lebanon after Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri abandoned his attempt to form a government, further plunging the country into economic chaos.

Organized with the support of the United Nations, the fundraiser will be held on 4 August – the first anniversary of a port explosion in Beirut that killed some 200 people.

The French foreign ministry said Hariri’s exit confirmed a political deadlock deliberately continued by Lebanese leaders “even as the country sinks into unprecedented economic and social crisis”.

His departure comes after nine months of deliberations with President Michel Aoun over a cabinet line-up that could have set in motion a plan to rescue the country from financial meltdown.

Source: Websites