General Aoun continues to be the obstacle , just like he was during the presidential elections . He always wants a disproportionate share . PM Siniora made it clear Monday through his adviser that the representation of the Christian community within the cabinet should be balanced between three pillars : Aoun, March 14 and the president
It is expected that Wednesday afternoon the focus in Lebanon will shift to Secretary General of "Hezbollah" Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah who will hold at 5:00 PM a press conference to talk about the swap of prisoners with Israel
Wednesday
23:38 Israeli army detained a Lebanese shepherd inside the blue line in Shebaa farms area hours after Hezbollah's Nasrallah speech
22:59 MP Bahiah Hariri : The resistance against the Israeli enemy is a Lebanese tradition for which we all paid a high price but is one of the issues that unite us
22:43 Jund el Sham and Fatah gunmen clash in Ein el Helweh Palestinian refugee camp around 9:30 PM local time. According to NNA the clash erupted when Jund al-Sham fighters raided a Fatah position at the camp's upper entrance. No casualties were reported
21:59 Abbas Hashem: the philosophy behind the Doha accord wa to create a partnership between the powerful. It identified the ministry of interior as neutral and identified five ministries as sovereign: Foreign affairs, Interior, defense, Finance and Justice
21:56 MP Samir Franjiyeh: What Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said could open the doors for things to return to normal and if we deal positively with what he said we could transform the liberation of the prisoners into national wedding for all the Lebanese
19:52 PM Siniora chaired a meeting of the earthquake committee and discussed the situation with the insurance companies and the industrial companies
19:51 At least 3 killed and several wounded ( including 2 Syrian workers ) when an old building collapsed in Sahel el Tal Tripoli
19:43 MP Mukhaiber met with the British ambassador and discussed the situation in the country
19:24 MP Saad Hariri met the Mufti of Tripoli Sheikh Malek al Shaar to discuss the situation in north Lebanon
18:48 President Suleiman received an Augusta Westland 139 Helicopter as a present from the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa al Thani as part of a military package that Qatar is donating to Lebanon
16:30 France: Hezbollah has a major role in the internal Lebanese politics and we will judge based on its behavior
16:15 Siniora met British ambassador, father Sahyouni and a delegation from Munayeh that came to ask for compensation for the damages that occurred during the Nahr el Bared battle between the army and fatah al Islam terrorists
15:50 Minister Khalifa there is tyotal coordination between the ministry of health and the hospital in the event Lebanon is hit by any major earthquake
15:00 FPM's Gibran Bassil: The coming few hours could witness the birth date of the new government if the majority will make as many concessions as we did
15:06 LBC : Government Sources revealed that General Aoun's insistence on the ministry of public works and communications continues to be the main obstacle facing government formation. Siniora is opposed to Aoun's demands because he considers it unbalanced
15:00 FPM's Gibran Bassil is currently meeting with PM designate Siniora at the Grand Serail
14:40 The army is setting up checkpoints and motorized patrols in the Sannine mountain area to reassure the citizens after the recent kidnappings and interrogations by Hezbollah gunmen. Former president Amin Gemayel criticized Hezbollah and accused it of setting up a base in Sannine
13:50 Us ambassador Sison after meeting Dr Geagea: The US administration is pressing Israel to withdraw from Shebaa farms and hand over to UN
13:20 Hezbollah asked its supporters to refrain from celebratory gunfire during the speech of Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and to also refrain from any participating in celebratory motorcades of cars and motorbikes
12:36 LBC TV: President Michel Suleiman is meeting with Hezbollah officials Hussein Khalil and Wafiq Safa.
12:35 The British government lists Hezbollah's "armed wing" as a terrorist organization.
12:25 Voice of Lebanon: The Bhannes Center, which monitors seismic activity, reported an earthquake in South Lebanon near Qaaqlayat al-Jisr ( just north of Litani River ) measuring 3.1 on the Richter scale.
11:40 Mufti of Tripoli Sheikh Malek Shaar . The situation in Tripoli is reassuring, and the army has deployed at all major intersections , there is no armed presence in the streets and the traffic is normal and the security forces are pursuing troublemakers
10:57 The Maronite bishops met in Bkirki: The delay in forming the cabinet is not a healthy sign . Everyone should put the interest of the country first and above the interests of any political bloc. Discourse between politicians has reached a very low level and is reflecting negatively on their supporters
10:30 Makhzoumi told LBC: I don't see a solution soon and don't expect elections in 2009 because I don't expect an agreement on the paragraph that deals with the resistance issue in the government statement
09:22 Voice of Lebanon: Security officials say that a hand grenade exploded this morning in the Baal Al-Darawich area of Bab Al-Tabbaneh in the city of Tripoli. No casualties were reported.
08:11 Ammar Houri told Voice of Lebanon: Reports leaking from the Syrian side via their allies in Lebanon indicate that Syria prefers to have the government formed in Lebanon before Syrian president Bashar Assad heads to Paris , since he wants to use this issue to score points during his meeting with the French counterpart
07:50 Sada el Balad : Aoun will score three gains if he succeeds in getting the deputy PM position for Abi Jamra . 1- He will take away this title from Elias el Murr, 2- His son-in-Law Gibran Bassil will become the deputy chief of the Free Patriotic Movement and 3- Assaad Hardan will be able to secure a parliament seat in Marjayoun
07:36 Hassan Rifai told Voice of Lebanon: It is not possible for the parliament to meet and legislate while we have a temporary government . It is essential that a new government is formed as soon as possible to start implementing the Doha accord
07:23 Gen Aoun told Daily Star : "I have not received the offers mentioned in the media . foreign interference is blocking the formation of the cabinet ". Yesterday " Al Rai (opinion) newspaper reported that Syria is asking for a special price from Saudi Arabia to facilitate the formation of the government in Lebanon.
06:54 "Hezbollah" has not provided detailed information about the celebrations , while preparations are underway to celebrate the liberation of the prisoners, as well as for the funeral of martyrs in Abaih the birthplace of prisoner Samir Quntar and in Aita al-Shaab and other towns
06:34 "An-Nahar": President Suleiman is determined to wrap up the subject of government before traveling to Paris on July 12 and will spare no means to conclude this matter because of the sensitivities of the political and security situations
06:08 Iranian FM Mottaki: Israeli situation today does not allow it to enter into a regional adventure since it continues to suffer from the consequences of the recent war on Lebanon
06:06 "Ha'aretz:" Sources in the Israeli security establishment believes that "Hezbollah" has not provided the German mediator with the physical evidence concerning the captured soldiers, but instead has been boasting about the success of the prisoner exchange deal and making Olmert feel he was personally defeated , because it was him who took the war decision after the kidnapping of the 2 soldiers .
05:45 "Hezbollah" presented his report on the fate of Ron Arad and this will guarantee the implementation of the prisoner swap deal within 1 week to 12 days
05:29 Secretary General of "Hezbollah" sayyed Hassan Nasrallah will hold at 5:00 PM a press conference to talk about the exchange of prisoners with Israel
05:22 "An-Nahar": Siniora sources said no new development yesterday, except for several contacts between Siniora and Suleiman and refrained from giving any details
Tuesday
01:20 Al Akhbar : The meeting between MP Saad Hariri and the president included a dinner at the Republican palace . Hariri contacted Siniora from the palace and this resulted in Siniora agreeing to contact gen. Aoun to discuss the most recent offer on his share in government
23:40 Saad Hariri after meeting the president : Hope that the government will be formed soonest possible . This delay is hurting the country. The delay has been caused by disagreement over the allocation of certain ministries .
We talked about the security issue also and we both agreed that this is the responsibility of the state and the army
23:26 The meeting continues till this hour between MP Saad Hariri and the president
22:49 MP Houri told LBC that the majority has offered many concessions to facilitate the formation of the cabinet and we look forward for the national dialogue that will be chaired by the president and to discuss the defense strategy
22:35 MP Saad Hariri arrived at the Baabda Palace to meet with the president
21:45 General Aoun told voice of Noor": we rejected the offers given to us because we considered them unfair and they accuse us of creating obstacles
21:18 Ban - Ki Moon urges Israel and Lebanon to use the opportunity that Doda accord provided to seek permanent peace
20:44 The gas station that was set on fire today belonged to John Costantine . tens of cars were set on fire and several houses and buildings in the area were damaged . The Civil defense extinguished the fire and helped evacuating the injured people
20:30 Minister Haddad : the cost to the government of the subsidy of the flour / bread will exceed $50 million
20:03 MP Robert Ghanem: There is no explicit provision in the constitution that sets deadline for the formation of the government> there is obviously a decision to obstruct the government and the new presidential era .
19:50 The Red Cross have transferred an unspecified number of citizens to hospitals near the karm el Zaitoon area, all of whom were wounded when the electric generator near the Constantine Gas Station in Ashrafieh caught fire this afternoon. The Civil Defense forces have put out the fire, and several cars were severely damaged.
19:46 PM Siniora met with Marwan Hamade the Minister of Communications and chaired a meeting to discuss ways to combat the fires that are taking place in Lebanon
19:08 The Beirut Criminal Court postponed the trial of a person accused of theft and forgery
18:55 Huge Fire erupted in a gas station in karm el Zaitoon in Ashrafiyeh , east Beirut The civil defense firefighters rushed to the station to extinguish the fire . The fire was caused by the burning of the electric power generator . Several cars that were parked at or near the station caught fire and several people were injured and were taken to the hospital for treatment
18:41 Geagea: "We welcome the return of the prisoners from Israeli jails with reservation about the absence of the Lebanese state from the negotiations and regret the lack of attention to the issue of prisoners in the Syrian prisons "
16:59 Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah is scheduled to hold a press conference at 5:00 PM on Wednesday, July 2, 2008. He will be talking about the prisoner exchange with Israel
Tags: Breaking News, Hezbollah, Lebanon, Lebanon Files, Qatar, Siniora, source: Now Lebanon, Suleiman, Ya Libnan
