Mikati denies resignation, unity government should be reached first

Lebanese Army soldiers patrol a neighborhood after overnight clashes in Beirut Serenity returned on Monday to the areas that saw escalating tension during the last three days in Lebanon on the back of the assassination of Major General Wissam al-Hassan, slain chief of the Internal Security Forces Intelligence Bureau, who was killed in b a car bomb near his house in Beirut's Ashrafiyeh neighbourhood on Friday.
Most of the blocked roads in Beirut and the northern city of Tripoli have been reopened on Monday morning, after three days of riots and armed clashes.
Police fired gunshots in the air and teargas Sunday to disperse hundreds of protesters attempting to storm the Grand Serail, the facilities housing Lebanon’s government, as Future Movement officials urged the demonstrators to vacate the streets.
There were casualties on both sides and ambulances rushed to the scene to clear the injured.
The incident occurred just moments after funeral speeches ended at Mohammad al-Amin Mosque near the Martyrs' Square.
Thousands gathered at Martyrs' Square where Major General Hassan, was buried near the tomb of slain former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
The Lebanese Army raided suspected militant hideouts in several areas on Beirut's outskirts Monday and clashed with gunmen, security sources told Arabstoday.
The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the raids, which began at early morning, were heavily concentrated in the areas of Tayyouneh, Qasqas and Beshara al-Khoury.
The Army crackdown came after six people were wounded in overnight clashes in Beirut's Tariq al-Jdideh neighbourhood following the funeral of a slain general.
The sources said the six men were wounded in the exchanges of machine-gun fire and rocket-propelled grenades between the predominantly Sunni Tariq al-Jdideh and nearby Barbour, a neighbourhood controlled by the Amal Movement and Hezbollah.
The wounded, all from Tariq al-Jadideh, were taken to the local Makassid hospital for treatment.
Fighting has already stopped and the Lebanese Army managed to deploy and calm returned to the embattled areas.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Najib Mikati said Monday he didn't present his resignation in light of the assassination of Hassan.
Speaking to the Lebanese daily, As-Safir, Mikati said that he didn't speak of resigning to President Michel Suleiman or the cabinet.
He added that he repeated to Suleiman what he had said months ago that he is willing to resign if an agreement over a national unity cabinet is reached.
"I accepted this position out of my convictions to protect the country and its people, especially people from my sect," he stressed.
"These two issues will be at the heart of my actions until Lebanon ends its national struggle that has been going on for years," he said.
Sources close to Mikati told Arabstoday that he received contacts and messages from international and European powers that highlighted the importance of calm and stability in Lebanon.
The sources said that the fact that the prime minister received contacts from US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius after opposition supporters' attempt to storm the cabinet headquarters [the Grand Serail] is a sign of an international will and backing for the government to remain in power.
Opposition supporters attempted on Sunday to storm the Grand Serail in downtown Beirut after Hassan's funeral, demanding the resignation of Mikati and his cabinet.
Mikati is expected to travel to Saudi Arabia to perform the hajj pilgrimage this week.