Oct 11, 2018

Lebanon's oldest newspaper An-Nahar went out to newsstands completely blank on Thursday to protest a political deadlock and economic woes in the tiny Mediterranean country.

Despite more than five months of wrangling, premier-designate Saad Hariri has been unable to form a new government, putting a precious $11-billion aid package at risk.

An-Nahar, which was founded in 1933, published eight blank pages in print and linkless white boxes on its main page online, posting headlines but no news items.

"People are tired and An-Nahar is tired of writing up your pretexts and repeated empty promises," editor-in-chief Nayla al-Tueni said at a press conference in Beirut.

"God knows how long we will wait to see" a decision on a cabinet line-up, she said.