Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal said he was surprised by the “erroneous interpretations” of his remarks on the situation in Lebanon and stressed support for Lebanese legitimacy.

In a statement to the Saudi Press Agency, al-Faisal denied that he had told al-Arabiya TV network there was a change in Saudi policy towards Lebanon.

A Lebanese figure close to Syria urged Lebanese not to be over-optimistic about the Saudi-Syria mediation effort to find an exit to the crisis over the international tribunal.

He confirmed that the Saudi-Syria deal had been cut during the recent visit by President Bashar Assad to Saudi Arabia and his meeting at Riyadh airport with King Abdullah in the presence of his son, Prince Abdul Aziz.

Saudi Arabia is putting more pressure on Prime Minister Saad Hariri to reject the Special Tribunal for Lebanon investigating the 2005 assassination of his father ex-PM, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported on its website.

In return, it said, Hizbullah would guarantee Hariri that it would not harm him. Hizbullah would also avoid any overt military activities and Hariri would be allowed to maintain his own security apparatus.

A Syrian-Saudi initiative aimed at finding a solution to the Lebanese crisis waits for a signal from Saudi King Abdullah, As-Safir newspaper reported Friday.

It cited a source who followed up on a visit to Paris by Syrian President Bashar Assad.

Saudi Ambassador Ali Awad Assiri said Monday that the Saudi-Syrian initiative aimed at ending the Lebanese crisis was not linked to the indictment that will be issued by the international tribunal in ex-Premier Rafik Hariri’s assassination case.

“The Saudi-Syrian initiative … is ongoing and will continue. It has nothing to do with a decision or the release of an indictment,” Assiri told Voice of Lebanon radio station.

Hizbullah deputy Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem expressed optimism that the Syrian-Saudi initiative would solve the Lebanese crisis before the international tribunal issues its indictment in ex-Premier Rafik Hariri’s assassination case.

“There is still an opportunity to find a solution but the door will not remain open forever,” Qassem told As Safir newspaper in remarks published Saturday.

Saudi King Abdullah's second round of back surgery in New York was successful and he will begin rehabilitation, the royal court announced late Friday.

The surgery "was completed successfully and now the king will begin a second phase of physiotherapy," the court said in a statement on the official SPA news agency.

Arab diplomatic sources in Beirut said that Premier Saad Hariri sent a letter to the Syrian leadership stressing his commitment to agreements reached between Damascus and Riyadh.

The letter came in response to accusations that Hariri was not committed to Riyadh’s demands on a settlement of the Lebanese crisis, the sources told As Safir newspaper.

Loyalty to the Resistance bloc MP Mohammed Raad has called for serious efforts to help the regional Saudi-Syrian initiative on Lebanon to succeed.

In remarks to As Safir newspaper, Raad said: “At a time when the Saudi-Syrian initiative is becoming more active to settle the crisis, this stage requires serious efforts to help the regional effort.”

The Syrian-Saudi initiative aimed at finding a solution to the Lebanese crisis is garnering more regional and international support, An Nahar daily reported Tuesday.

The newspaper said such support contributes to a solution that “ends the political and constitutional paralysis” that has struck the country.