Former finance minister Mohammad Safadi withdrew his candidacy to be prime minister of the next Lebanese government, broadcasters LBCI and al-Jadeed reported on Saturday.

 

Safadi emerged as a candidate on Thursday when political sources and Lebanese media said three major parties had agreed to support him for the position.

 

Saad Hariri quit as prime minister on October 29 in the face of unprecedented protests against a ruling elite that is widely accused of overseeing rampant state corruption and steering Lebanon into its worst economic crisis since the 1975-90 war.