Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun confirmed that he would hold unconditional talks with his rival Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea but refused to give up his candidacy for the presidential post.

Aoun told al-Akhbar daily in an interview published on Thursday that he would meet with Geagea when the LF chief returns from his visit to Riyadh.

Britain's Middle East Minister Tobias Ellwood has said that he encouraged rival leaders to engage in dialogue and elect a new head of state.

Ellwood told An Nahar daily in remarks published on Thursday that during talks with Speaker Nabih Berri and Prime Minister Tammam Salam he called for dialogue and stressed the importance of swiftly filling the vacuum at Baabda Palace.

Speaker Nabih Berri called on Thursday for the formation of a security cell to tackle the abduction of servicemen who are held by Islamist gunmen, stressing on the complete coherence with Prime Minister Tammam Salam regarding the case.

Berri said in comments published in al-Mustaqbal newspaper that there is complete coherence between his adviser Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil and Salam regarding the case.

A high-ranking al-Mustaqbal movement delegation traveled Wednesday to Saudi Arabia to discuss Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea's possible withdrawal from the presidential run.

According to state-run National News Agency, the delegation was led by head of al-Mustaqbal bloc MP Fouad Saniora and Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq.

Britain on Wednesday stressed that the international community must not “underestimate the challenges facing Lebanon,” promising to maintain its support for the country.

Following years of demands, the ministers of health and culture on Wednesday launched a long-awaited healthcare plan for artists.

A soldier and a fugitive were injured Wednesday as an army patrol foiled a drug deal in the northern Bekaa region of Hermel.

Several Ministers and the Economic Committees launched on Wednesday a training center to train workers on food safety measures during a conference at the Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture in Beirut's Hamra area.

Industry Minister Hussein Hajj Hassan stressed during the conference that his ministry will oblige all factories to register their workers in free obligatory courses related to the food safety process.

Head of the Free Patriotic Movement MP Michel Aoun met on Wednesday with a delegation from the families of the servicemen who were kidnapped from the northeastern border town of Arsal in August.

He said after the talks: “An officer from the Internal Security Forces and another from the army should be tasked with keeping the families up-to-date with the developments linked to the case.”

State security arrested on Wednesday a Syrian member of the al-Qaida-linked al-Nusra Front on suspicion of participating in the battles against the Lebanese army, the state-run National News Agency reported.

NNA said Salah al-Dik was apprehended by state security members in the Bekaa Valley's north.