Lebanon faces an indefinite government crisis that further complicates the path out of its financial meltdown, adding to risks of instability as hardship deepens and state institutions teeter on the brink of collapse.
Lebanon has had neither a head of state nor a fully empowered cabinet since Michel Aoun's term as president ended on Oct. 31 - an unprecedented vacuum even by the standards of a country that has enjoyed little stability since independence.
With politicians showing no compromise in a tussle over state power, some political sources and analysts say a compromise on the presidency may demand the type of foreign mediation that has saved Lebanon from previous such standoffs.
