A meeting that brought together the two foes, former Premier Omar Karami and al-Mustaqbal bloc leader Fouad Saniora, came out with no result after they expressed conflicting viewpoints on the funding of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.

Saniora stressed after the meeting in Beirut on Wednesday the importance of funding the STL, stating that it is a “debt on Lebanon.”

The March 14-led opposition is preparing for a “general national conference” next month in the light of the results achieved by the “Lady of the Mountain” gathering scheduled for Oct. 23, An Nahar newspaper reported on Friday.

The conference will determine a broad vision on the upcoming stage in Lebanon and the region.

Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri is holding on to the March 14 coalition and to equality in distributing of powers between Muslims and Christians, An Nahar newspaper reported on Tuesday.

Former MP Bassem al-Sabaa told al-Mustaqbal leadership during a meeting led by head of the party’s parliamentary bloc Fouad Saniora that Hariri voices his support to the Taef accord.

The residents of the North Metn town of Ain Saadeh blocked several roads on Wednesday in protest of a decision to install high-voltage electricity lines in the region.

The residents began rallying at dawn threatening authorities to hamper their plans.

March 14 led-opposition leaders have held a meeting at Center House to discuss the local situation and to coordinate their stances concerning the upcoming stage, An Nahar newspaper reported on Thursday.

The meeting was held on Tuesday in the presence of Phalange Party leader Amin Gemayel, head of the Mustaqbal bloc former Prime Minister Fouad Saniora, Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea and MPs Butros Harb and Marwan Hmadah and March 14 General Secretariat Coordinator Fares Soaid, the daily said.

Grand Mufti Sheikh Mohammed Rashid Qabbani on Wednesday praised the positive spirit that prevailed during the Christian-Islamic spiritual summit, An Nahar newspaper reported.

“The summit came at the right time in a spontaneous way without any long preparations,” Qabbani told the daily.

The luncheon banquet that was hosted by Speaker Nabih Berri in honor of Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi in the southern town of Msayleh on Monday was shunned by former Premier Fouad Saniora and MP Bahia Hariri, thus raising speculation about the consequences of al-Rahi’s visit to the south.

Sources close to Saniora told An Nahar newspaper on Tuesday that the reason behind the MP’s boycott to the banquet was because al-Rahi refused to accept an invitation over lunch at the Hariri’s house in Majdelyoun but accepted Berri’s invitation.

Speaker Nabih Berri praised the Lebanese officials’ cooperation in approving the electricity project, An Nahar newspaper reported on Friday.

“The Lebanese won… Political disputes and discussions are normal, but when it comes to the people’s livelihoods and economic status, everyone should compromise,” Berri said.

The head of the Mustaqbal bloc MP Fouad Saniora stated on Thursday that parliament’s approval of the electricity draft law is a “victory” for the Lebanese.

He said after the parliamentary session: “The agreement refuted all arguments that one political camp supports electricity in Lebanon and another opposes it.”

Joint parliamentary committees are expected to convene on Monday in order to discuss the electricity draft law that was approved by the government on September 7, reported the daily An Nahar on Sunday.

The draft law however was handed over to the committees on Thursday without the amendments that were introduced to it by the cabinet.