The government imposed new entry controls on Syrians on Tuesday in a bid to reduce friction between the host population and the 600,000 who have already crossed.
Ministers said they had no intention of closing the border to refugees fleeing the devastating 28-month conflict in their homeland.
Full StoryCaretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati on Tuesday declared that the Lebanese government rejects the European Union's decision to put Hizbullah's so-called military wing on its list of “terrorist organizations.”
“It has become evident to everyone that the situation is not fine and that overcoming the stalemate will require concessions from everyone,” Miqati said during an iftar banquet organized by the Social Welfare Institutions at the BIEL exhibition center in Beirut.
Full StoryThe opposition Syrian National Council on Tuesday claimed that it has documented the presence of a number of mass graves containing the bodies of hundreds of Hizbullah fighters who were killed in Syria.
“We have discovered a number of mass graves in which Hizbullah used to bury its members after every battle on Syrian territory, instead of repatriating the bodies to Lebanon,” SNC spokesman Mouayyed Ghizlan told CNN.
Full StoryThe United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon has taken precautionary measures around its posts in the South, reported the National News Agency on Tuesday.
It said that the measures were taken in light of the European Union's decision to blacklist Hizbullah's military wing as a terrorist organization.
Full StoryThe Syrian Foreign Ministry condemned on Tuesday the European Union's decision to list Hizbullah's military wing as a terrorist organization.
It said that it took the decision at “American and Israeli orders to target the resistance in Lebanon and the rest of the Arab world.”
Full StoryCaretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati on Tuesday decided to renew the mandate of Sidon Mufti Sheikh Salim Sousan as the head of the southern city's Islamic Endowments for one year starting June 20, 2013.
"Miqati issued decree number 1378 on Tuesday afternoon in which he decided to renew the term of Sousan,” revealed LBCI television.
Full StoryThe Mustaqbal bloc lamented on Tuesday the European Union's decision to list Hizbullah's military wing as a terrorists organization, saying that it targets a large segment of the Lebanese population.
It said in a statement after its weekly meeting: “Hizbullah could have avoided this decision had it kept its goals linked to higher Lebanese interests and remained keen on Lebanese unity that was demonstrated during its honorable resistance against Israel.”
Full StoryFree Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun on Tuesday said the EU's decision to blacklist Hizbullah's so-called armed wing was “based on false accusations,” noting that Lebanon has been suffering from "the wars waged by some of your countries in Syria."
“Today, I will limit my statement to one topic. I will send a message to the EU which has put Hizbullah's armed wing on the terror list,” said Aoun after the weekly meeting of the Change and Reform bloc.
Full StoryPrime Minister-designate Tammam Salam hoped on Tuesday that the European Union would retract its decision to list Hizbullah's military wing as a terrorist organization.
He said: “The decision goes against EU member states' repeated claims that they seek to help Lebanon overcome the complications on its internal scene.”
Full StorySpeaker Nabih Berri urged on Tuesday the European Union to retract its decision against Hizbullah, saying it underestimates justice and serves Israel.
“The EU should back off from its decision and the measures that without any doubt would target all the Lebanese and their interests in Europe,” Berri, who is also the head of the Amal movement that is allied with Hizbullah, said in a statement.
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