Hizbullah deputy Secretary General Sheikh Naim Qassem welcomed on Wednesday the dialogue between the Mustaqbal Movement and Hizbullah, hoping that it will lead to solutions to pending problems.

He said: “Dialogue prepares the ground for a joint battle against terrorism that has become a threat to all.”

Speaker Nabih Berri voiced on Wednesday his satisfaction with the dialogue between the Mustaqbal Movement and Hizbullah that was held on Tuesday.

He hoped that the talks would be expanded to include other forces.

Health Minister Wael Abou Faour reiterated on Wednesday his determination to continue the food safety campaign throughout Lebanon, while focusing on the latest discoveries at the Rafik Hariri International Airport.

He said during a press conference before food safety inspectors: “The food safety file at the airport has been referred to the General Prosecution.”

The Lebanese army announced on Wednesday the arrest of two Lebanese for transferring equipment to the outskirts of the northeastern border town of Arsal.

They were identified as Hussein Deeb al-Fleiti and Abdullah Mohammed Amoun, said the military statement.

Prime Minister Tammam Salam expressed hope on Wednesday that the dialogue between Hizbullah and al-Mustaqbal movement would contribute to the election of a new head of state.

Following talks with Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi in Bkirki, Salam said he had high hopes that talks between the rivals would create some kind of “reassurance” for the Lebanese people.

The Syrian navy opened fire on Wednesday at Lebanese fishing boats off the coast of the northern Lebanese town of al-Arida, detaining three fishermen, the state-run National News Agency reported.

The news agency said that a fishing boat owned by Fadi H., who hails from al-Arida, was damaged but no casualties were reported.

Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat slammed on Wednesday the negligence and decay at state facilities, vowing that the food safety campaign will continue.

“The scandal that hit food storage areas at the Rafik Hariri International Airport shows that decay and negligence is affecting all state facilities,” Jumblat said a day after his aide, Health Minister Wael Abou Faour, lashed out at the “barn” and “death chambers for the citizens' health” at the facility.

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi called in his Christmas message on Wednesday for the election of a wise head of state who prioritizes the nation's interest and hoped that Lebanon would have competent politicians.

Al-Rahi slammed the lack of loyalty to the nation that led to the violation of the constitution and the failure to elect a president.

A teenage girl, who had been missing for the past two days, was handed over to security forces in northern Lebanon, the state-run News Agency reported Wednesday.

A man identified as Mashhour D., who was kidnapped by the girl's family in retaliation, was also in the custody of the Internal Security Forces Intelligence Branch, it said.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant reportedly expressed willingness to release several soldiers and policemen in its captivity in return for freeing three women held in Lebanese prisons along with their children.

According to the relatives of the captive soldiers and policemen, who were taken hostage when ISIL and the al-Qaida-affiliate al-Nusra Front overran the northeastern border town of Arsal in August, Ahmed Fleiti recently visited the outskirts of the town and met with ISIL officials.