Polling stations close in Lebanon for parliamentary elections

Counting votes during the Lebanese parliamentary elections at a polling station in BeirutBEIRUT, May 15.Polling stations were closed for the parliamentary elections in Lebanon, the counting of votes has begun, a RIA Novosti correspondent reports. Elections to the House of Representatives (parliament) were held on Sunday in Lebanon against the backdrop of an acute economic crisis. 3.9 million eligible voters could take part in the voting. The final results are likely to be announced the day after the election. According to the Lebanese Interior Ministry, the turnout as of 17:00 local time (coincides with Moscow time) was 32%. Several conflict situations were reported between political rivals in various regions of Lebanon. So, according to the MTV channel in the city of Zahla in the Bekaa province on Sunday there was a clash between supporters of the Shiite movement Hezbollah and the Christian party Lebanese Forces. Voting was suspended for half an hour due to a fight in the nearest polling station. The El-Nashra portal reported that in the village of Ar-Rasiya in the Bekaa there was a clash between supporters of two Christian parties — the Lebanese Forces and the Free Patriotic Movement, the founder whose current Lebanese President Michel Aoun is.Russian observers assessed the organization of the parliamentary elections in Lebanon There are 718 candidates for 128 seats in parliament, while the seats are distributed according to ethno-confessional characteristics among 11 groups. For example, Sunni Muslims and Shiite Muslims each have 27 seats, while Maronite Christians have 34. Earlier, Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati announced that he would not run for parliamentary elections. An influential Lebanese politician and former Prime Minister Saad Hariri also said that there would be no candidates from the Mustaqbal party he leads in the elections. Lebanon has been in a deep financial and economic crisis for more than two years, which is accompanied by political and social tensions. Against the background of the crisis, the banking system was almost completely paralyzed, the national currency depreciated more than 20 times against the dollar. As a result, more than 70% of the population fell below the poverty line.