A symbol of Lebanon's golden age, but also its brutal civil war, the empty shell of the Holiday Inn hotel in Beirut could now take on a new life.

No one yet knows what it will become, but after decades as a chilling reminder of the 1975-1990 conflict, the building is set to be auctioned off in the coming months.

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi's visit to Jerusalem continues to be controversial, with some considering it a “historical mistake that opens the door for normalization with Israel,” and Church authorities reiterating that it has a strictly religious character.

Bishop Samir Mazloum assured OTV on Saturday evening that the patriarch “is not going to hold a peace treaty with Israel.”

U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon David Hale left Beirut on Saturday evening and headed to Riyadh where he is expected to hold talks on the upcoming presidential elections.

"Ambassador Hale is leaving to Riyadh to meet with former Premier Saad Hariri and Saudi officials to discuss international support for Lebanon,” the Unites States' embassy said in a released statement.

Hizbullah members on Saturday clashed with Syrian gunmen who tried to infiltrate the Bekaa town of Brital, LBCI television reported.

"A clash erupted between Hizbullah members and armed Syrians in Brital when the gunmen tried to infiltrate Brital,” LBCI said.

One person has been abducted in Bekaa town of Hortaala after he had been involved in a dispute over dealing with drugs, the state-run National News Agency reported on Saturday.

"Armed men riding two four-wheel drives have kidnapped Lebanese national Khaled al-Nashar in Hortaala,” the NNA said.

President Michel Suleiman requested that General Prosecutor Judge Samir Hammoud explain to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon the country's commitment to freedom of the media.

He requested that he explain the extent to which Lebanon respects laws on the freedom of the media.

A number of Syrians and Palestinians were arrested on Saturday as they attempted to travel from Lebanon using false legal papers, reported the National News Agency.

It said that 49 Syrians and Palestinians, who sought refuge from Syria, were arrested by security forces at the Rafik Hariri International Airport.

The army announced on Saturday the arrest of a number of suspects in Beirut's southern suburbs of Dahieh.

It arrested seven suspects on charges of the possession of weapons and military equipment.

Speaker Nabih Berri expressed his fears over vacuum in the presidency amid the ongoing disputes between the rival March 8 and 14 camps over a candidate, reported al-Akhbar newspaper on Saturday.

He told the daily: “Vacuum will facilitate foreign meddling in the elections.”

The March 14 alliance is studying the possibility of the nomination of Telecommunications Minister Butros Harb as president instead of its current nominee Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea, reported al-Akhbar newspaper on Saturday.

March 14 sources cited the various closed-door meetings among members of the camp and Harb's recent meeting with Progressive Socialist Party chief MP Walid Jumblat as signs that the minister may be named as a candidate.