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Suleiman Hails New Tunisian Constitution, Calls for Democratic Systems in Region

President Michel Suleiman participated on Friday in a ceremony in Tunisia to celebrate the adoption of the country's new constitution three years after the revolution and attended by the heads of state.

Suleiman voiced hope during a brief speech before the Tunisian national assembly that Tunis enjoys stability and prosperity after the adoption of the new constitution.

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Retired British Officer Testifies at STL on Mitsubishi Items Found in Seabed

A retired British police officer testified at the Special Tribunal for Lebanon on Friday on the operations that took place to recover pieces from the seabed in the vicinity of the area where ex-Premier Rafik Hariri was assassinated on Feb. 14, 2005.

Witness Malcolm Wilson, who used to work in the anti-terror unit of British police, briefed the court on a report he had written on the search of identified open sea area, swimming pool, and marina surrounding the St. Georges Yacht Club.

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Mustaqbal Lauds Bkirki Treaty: Combating Terrorism Needs National Solution

The Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc hailed on Friday the Bkirki Treaty that was announced by Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi, saying that it helps “fortify Lebanon's immunity because it asserts national principles stipulated in the Baabda Declaration.”

It said after its weekly meeting that the treaty “adds central meanings to the Lebanese national entity.”

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Report: Soldiers Ordered to Search Suspicious Women at Checkpoints

Terrorists are now resorting to women to carry explosives used in suicide and car bombings but the Lebanese army leadership has given orders to search them, security sources said Friday.

The sources told al-Joumhouria newspaper that the army discovered a new tactic used by extremists by relying on women to transport explosives material.

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Paris to Host in March Meeting for International Support Group for Lebanon

The International Support Group for Lebanon is expected to meet in March in Paris at the invitation of France for the establishment of two funds the first to support Lebanon's economy and the second to aid the Syrian refugees in the country.

Sources told An Nahar newspaper that the meeting will seek to set a plan to grant Lebanon the funds to offer it financial support amid the acute crisis it's suffering from due to the ongoing conflict in Syria.

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PSP Seeks to End Cabinet Standstill, Ease Tension among Political Foes

Caretaker Social Affairs Minister Wael Abou Faour stressed on Friday that the Progressive Socialist Party is seeking to avert the ongoing cabinet crisis and end the rift among the rival political parties.

“We are seeking to ease tension and end disputes” among the political foes, Abou Faour said in comments published in al-Liwaa newspaper.

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Security Portfolios Delay Cabinet Formation as Salam Seeks to Appease Rival Camps

Last minute obstacles linked to two key security portfolios prevented the formation of the government on Thursday after the March 8 alliance expressed reservations on making the two of them as part of the share of the March 14 camp.

President Michel Suleiman and Premier-designate Tammam Salam were planning to issue the cabinet formation decrees on Thursday but the Hizbullah-led March 8 team insisted to stick to the threatened boycott of Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun.

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Anti-Drug Bureau Seizes Large Quantity of Captagon in Baalbek, Detains Four Syrians

The Anti-Drug Bureau confiscated on Thursday a large quantity of captagon pills and detained four Syrians over drug trafficking charges, the state-run National News Agency reported.

According to a statement released by the Internal Security Forces General-Directorate, the Bekaa anti-drug bureau patrol, and after a thorough investigation, found the large quantity of captagon pills in a quarry in the town of Bajaj in north of Baalbek.

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Beirut Police Sets Up Roving Checkpoints to Reassure Citizens after Wave of Blasts

Beirut Police has decided to set up temporary checkpoints across the city in a bid to reassure citizens over their security in the wake of the latest wave of deadly bombings.

“The command of Beirut Police has decided – in coordination with acting Internal Security Forces chief Maj. Gen. Ibrahim Basbous and as part of executing the resolutions of the command's council – to set up roving checkpoints within the capital,” the National News Agency reported.

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March 14 Christian Figures Praise 'Historic' Bkirki Treaty

Christian figures in the March 14 coalition praised on Thursday the "historic" Bkirki Treaty that was unveiled on Wednesday and that focused on preserving Lebanon's coexistence and national pact.

"The Bkirki Treaty is a historic stance that emphasizes national principals that the patriarchy has always endorsed and protected,” the Phalange Party said in a released statement.

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