German Minister of Economic Cooperation and Development Gerd Mueller vowed on Thursday to increase assistance to Lebanon to help it confront the burden of Syrian refugees.

In the past three years, Germany granted 850 million euros to the countries hosting the refugees, with 250 million euros to Lebanon alone, Mueller said following talks with Prime Minister Tammam Salam at the Grand Serail.

Syrian and Iraqi Christians have pleaded for more international assistance from new homes in Lebanon where they recently arrived after fleeing attack by militants from the Islamic State group.

They spoke on Tuesday in two Beirut churches where they lined up to receive food baskets and other humanitarian assistance from a non-profit organization called In Defense of Christians (IDC), whose mission is to protect Christians in the Middle East.

A Lufthansa plane was forced to return to Beirut's Rafik Hariri International Airport on Tuesday after a flock of birds caused damaged to one of its engines, reported the National News Agency.

It said that flight 1307, which had departed the airport at 4:48 a.m., was forced to return three minutes after takeoff.

French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian has said he would visit Beirut mid-April to attend a ceremony on the first shipment of $3 billion worth of weapons paid for by Saudi Arabia.

However, Le Drian told pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat in remarks published on Thursday that the delivery of helicopters, missiles, warships, telecommunications equipment and other defense material will take three years to complete.

An envoy from Qatar was in Beirut on Thursday to mediate in the case of the Lebanese servicemen taken hostage by jihadists last year, al-Mustaqbal daily reported.

Government sources told the newspaper the mediator's arrival in the Lebanese capital was a sign that the negotiations on the captives have made a serious development.

The Progressive Socialist Party clarified Tuesday afternoon the content of an interview for party chief MP Walid Jumblat with As Safir newspaper, noting that his son, Taymour, will run normally in parliamentary elections “just like other candidates.”

The line saying “Jumblat will hand over his Shouf parliamentary seat to his son Taymour in May” was “inaccurate”, the PSP said in a statement.

The Kataeb Party welcomed on Monday the resumption of cabinet sessions, hoping that it will remind officials of their responsibilities and the need to elect a new president.

It said after its weekly politburo meeting: “We hope that the resumption of the sessions would restore normalcy to state institutions.”

Security forces and agencies are preparing to implement a security plan Beirut's southern suburbs of Dahiyeh, a Hizbullah stronghold, reported al-Akhbar newspaper on Saturday.

Security sources told the daily that the plan will be implemented “within two weeks.”

The head of the Beirut Port Authority Hassan Qoraytem is expected to visit Bkirki on Thursday to defend his decision to fill the controversial fourth basin at the port, al-Joumhouria newspaper reported.

The daily said Qoraytem will hold talks with Bishop Boulos Sayyah, who is expected to reiterate to the port official that Christian parties reject the filling of the basin.

Hizbullah reportedly can no longer endure the security chaos in Beirut's southern suburbs – Dahiyeh – as the Interior Ministry began preparing to implement a security plan in the area.

Sources revealed in comments published in al-Liwaa newspaper on Thursday that logistic preparations are underway to implement a security plan in Dahiyeh.