Lebanese prime minister-designate Fouad Siniora began talks with lawmakers today on forming a national unity government in which Hizbullah-led minority factions will wield veto power.
The new cabinet will give Iranian- and Syrian-backed Hizbullah and its allies the power to block key decisions. But its advent will also be another step towards reviving state institutions after an 18-month political crisis that paralysed government and pushed the country to the brink of civil war.
A Qatari-mediated deal earlier this month ended a sometimes violent standoff between the US-backed ruling coalition and the opposition spearheaded by the Shia Hizbullah group.
Under the agreement, majority factions will be allocated 16 ministers, the opposition 11 and the president three.
Lebanon's new president, former army chief Michel Suleiman, reappointed Mr Siniora prime minister on Wednesday, asking him to form a cabinet set to rule until a 2009 parliamentary election.
Mr Siniora will consult members of parliament from across the political spectrum in talks expected to last into next week.