Ministers representing the Change and Reform bloc in the cabinet are gearing up to discuss several controversial issues at government meetings, the first of which will be held on Thursday.

Free Patriotic Movement sources told al-Liwaa daily published Tuesday the ministers believe that they have the upper hand in deciding the major path the cabinet sessions would take including the appointments that it would make to top posts in state institutions.

The cabinet will hold its first meeting on Thursday with major issues on its agenda that need to be resolved after nearly five months of political vacuum.

The agenda of the cabinet holds 71 articles. The government will begin with the necessary steps to resolve the administrative and economic issues.

Hizbullah ministers have informed several cabinet members that they were planning to propose a discussion on the controversial issue of false witnesses in ex-Premier Rafik Hariri’s assassination case during cabinet sessions.

Ministerial sources told pan-Arab daily al-Hayat published Tuesday that Ministers Mohammed Fneish and Hussein al-Hajj Hassan are planning to open up the subject during government sessions.

Speaker Nabih Berri has reportedly suggested giving the leadership of the General Security Department to a Maronite in return for appointing a Shiite as Army chief.

Al-Liwaa daily said Tuesday that Berri’s proposal came after the Free Patriotic Movement expressed the desire to return the seat of the General Security’s presidency to the Maronite sect rather than keeping it with Shiites.

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak warned lawmakers against Hizbullah obtaining additional weapons and property because of instability in Syria.

Barak said Monday Israel “made sure to relay to the Lebanese government that it will be seen as responsible,” for any escalation on the border.

Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat on Monday stressed that he has not betrayed the memory of slain premier Rafik Hariri.

“I’m cautioning against the threats. I am with justice and stability but sometimes it is better to forget about truth for the sake of stability,” Jumblat said in an interview on MTV.

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) has no mandate to demarcate the maritime borders between Lebanon and Israel and its mission is limited to preventing any hostile naval acts, UNIFIL deputy spokesperson Andrea Tenenti said Monday.

He noted that the mandate of the UNIFIL Maritime Task Force is limited to helping the Lebanese navy in preventing the unauthorized entry of arms by sea into Lebanon.

The Phalange Party noted on Monday that the government’s position on the Special Tribunal for Lebanon does not adhere to United Nations Security Council 1757 on the issue.

It said in a statement after its weekly politburo meeting: “This will lead Lebanon to a confrontation with the international community, which will have negative repercussions on its economic, financial, and tourism fields.”

The Pre-Trial Judge, Daniel Fransen, issued on Friday July 8 international arrest warrants against the accused in the February 14, 2005 attack in which former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and many others were killed, said the Special Tribunal for Lebanon press office in a statement.

The Tribunal has requested Interpol to notify all States of the arrest warrants following a request from STL Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare, it added.

U.N. Special Coordinator for Lebanon Michael Williams stated on Monday that any country in the region and the world has the right to benefit from the water resources that fall within its territorial waters.

He hoped after holding talks with Interior Minister Marwan Charbel that Lebanon would be able to take advantage of the maritime resources found in the Mediterranean.