Caretaker Najib Miqati lamented on Saturday the current state of affairs in Lebanon given that it is suffering from the impact of the Syrian crisis.
Commenting on claims that he has become a target for assassination, he said: “I am performing my national duties and what pleases my conscience.”
Full StoryWashington reiterated on Saturday the long-standing advice that U.S. citizens avoid all travel to Lebanon in light of recent security incidents in the country.
“U.S. citizens living and working in Lebanon should understand that they accept risks in remaining in Lebanon and should carefully consider those risks. This supersedes the Travel Warning issued on October 9, 2013,” the Department of State said via twitter.
Full StoryThe latest efforts to form a new government have resulted in the proposal to distribute the four sovereign portfolios equally between the March 8 and 14 camps, reported An Nahar daily on Saturday.
It said that the March 8 camp will be granted the foreign and finance ministries, while the March 14 camp will be granted the defense and interior ministries.
Full StorySecurity authorities warned of the dangerousness of the upcoming phase in Lebanon amid information that more terrorist attacks will be carried out in the country, reported As Safir newspaper on Saturday.
Security sources told the daily that authorities received reports that Lebanon will soon be “facing a very dangerous phase.”
Full StoryAl-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc announced no Friday its insistence on a “complete and inclusive” rotation of ministerial portfolios in the new cabinet.
“Forming the new cabinet has become a must and this issue can no longer afford any delay or stalling,” the bloc said in a released statement on Friday evening after the MPs' weekly meeting.
Full StoryFree Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun on Friday stressed that Prime Minister-designate Tammam Salam will not be able to form “a de facto cabinet,” blaming him for the delay in the cabinet formation process.
“The consultations over cabinet formation have not led to anything and no progress has been made,” Aoun said during an interview with the pan-Arab, Beirut-based al-Mayadeen television.
Full StoryArmy chief Gen. Jean Qahwaji on Friday left for Saudi Arabia on an official visit to discuss the kingdom's grant to the military institution.
"Qahwaji received an invitation to visit Saudi Arabia and he will discuss with Saudi officials the country's support and grant to the army,” reported the state-run National News Agency.
Full StoryLebanese troops exchanged fire with unidentified Syrian gunmen near the country's border with Syria Friday, a security source said, after two-cross border incidents in the area.
There were no casualties in the gun battle, which came after at least one was killed by shelling from Syria and a deadly rebel attack against Syrian forces launched from inside Lebanon.
Full StoryUnknown gunmen shot a resident of the Tripoli district of Jabal Mohsen on Friday evening, in an assault that is likely linked to the wave of sectarianly motivated attacks that has rocked the city in recent months.
“Omran Suleiman was shot in the legs on al-Mallouleh road in Tripoli,” OTV reported.
Full StoryDamascus justified on Friday Hizbullah's involvement in the Syrian war, saying the party is “preemptively” defending Lebanon.
“Hizbullah's men are resilient fighters that are defending their country,” Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem said at a press conference in Switzerland's Geneva.
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