Lebanon's Information Minister Manal Abdel Samad resigned from her post on Sunday, marking the first resignation by a government minister since the massive explosion shook Beirut and prompted mass protests, reports DW.
Samad cited the failure of the government to carry out reforms and the catastrophic blast that hit Beirut on Tuesday, according to Lebanon's Al Jadeed TV. Earlier in the week, the Ministry of Information had denied rumors of her impending resignation.
She also apologized to the Lebanese public for "failing" them. "We did not live up to your expectations," she said.
Critics have blamed corruption and poor leadership at the heart of Lebanon's government. The blast killed more than 150 people, leaving 6,000 injured and some 300,000 homeless.
Lebanon's government has been facing difficulties for some time and was already confronting an economic crisis before the explosion took place. Foreign Minister Nassif Hitti resigned on Monday, one day before the blast, blaming the government's poor effort to pull the country out of its economic woes.