Lebanon's Diab says up to parliament to activate resigned cabinet

BEIRUT - Lebanon's outgoing prime minister, Hassan Diab, said on Wednesday that it was parliament's decision whether to re-activate a resigned cabinet, after months of wrangling that has blocked a deal on a new government.

Diab's cabinet has served in a caretaker capacity since quitting last August over the huge Beirut port blast that killed 200 people and compounded the country's financial collapse.

In his statement on Wednesday, Diab said the political deadlock spurred calls to activate his cabinet but that the question of whether the constitution allows it was up to the parliament. 

Meanwhile, Hezbollah parliamentary bloc said on Wednesday a new cabinet was necessary to pull the country out of its current financial crisis.

The group also said Lebanon needed transparency and cooperation between its leaders and to form a government that brings the most confidence from parliament.

"The government that has the most confidence from parliament is the government that can be depended on," the bloc said in a statement.