Report: Berri, Saniora Discussed Parliament Extension Appeal

Speaker Nabih Berri has discussed with al-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc leader MP Fouad Saniora the political crises gripping the country, As Safir daily reported on Friday.

The newspaper quoted sources as saying that Saniora visited Berri along with Nader Hariri, the adviser of al-Mustaqbal movement leader ex-PM Saad Hariri.

The meeting, which took place several days ago, was attended by Berri's aide Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil.

The conferees discussed the Free Patriotic Movement's appeal of the parliament extension law, which was adopted by 95 lawmakers last week.

The FPM has submitted the challenge before the Constitutional Council.

On a different note, the “positive signs” that Berri has been talking about are serious, the sources said.

Berri has recently claimed there were improvements in the presidential deadlock, a hint that a deal was in the making on a new head of state.

Al-Joumhouria said Friday that the speaker preferred to stay mum on the “encouraging” signs on the presidential elections.

He said a call by the U.N. Security Council for Lebanese lawmakers to elect a new president does not have certain intentions but is aimed at urging parliamentarians to quickly choose a new president.

On Wednesday, the 15-member council "expressed concern at the prolonged vacancy in the office of the presidency with a view to preserving the stability and the unity of Lebanon," said Australian Ambassador Gary Quinlan, whose country chairs the council.

The top U.N. body requested that parliament move "without delay" to a vote and said Lebanon's politicians must show the "flexibility and sense of urgency" needed to agree on a successor to Michel Suleiman, whose term ended in May.

The rival MPs have failed to find a successor over their differences on a compromise candidate.

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