Information Minister Tareq Mitri said the statement was adopted unanimously to safeguard "ministerial solidarity."

He identified the four Christian ministers as Nassib Lahoud, Tony Karam, Ibrahim Najjar and Elie Marouni.

Lahoud represents the Qornet Shahwan gathering of independent Christian politicians. Karam and Najjar represent the Lebanese Forces and Marouni represents the Phalange ( Kataeb) Party.

The four, however, are members of the March 14 majority alliance.

Mitri said the four wanted to add a phrase to the clause placing resistance activity "under the state wing," but their proposal was rejected.

Also Administrative Development Minister Ibrahim Shamseddine, proposed an amendment to a clause related to the disappearance in 1978 of Shiite Religious leader Imam Moussa al-Sadr while on a visit to Libya.

Shamseddine's amendment called for referring the issue to the International Court of Justice in The Hague, but the proposal was rejected by ministers representing the March 8 alliance.

It was the first such attempt by a cabinet minister to raise the Sadr disappearance case at the international justice level, accusing Libya of alleged involvement in the issue.

Ministers representing Michel Aoun's Free Patriotic Movement also proposed adding a clause to the policy statement on rejecting the naturalization of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon through national effort, and not just through government practices, but the proposal was rejected.

The FPM representatives also proposed an amendment calling for a collective return of Lebanese citizens who had fled to Israel in the year 2000, but ministers Ghazi Aridi and Wael Abu Faour, representing Walid Jumblatt's Democratic Gathering, rejected the proposal and insisted on maintaining a clause that permits the return of immigrants to Israel without dropping the right to sue "Israeli agents" who had served in the Israeli-affiliated South Lebanon Army militia.

Mitri said President Michel Suleiman, who presided over the cabinet session at the Baabda Palace, said the policy statement reflects "unity and national will."

Siniora said the policy statement is "in the interest of Lebanon."

"The forthcoming era is full of challenges and we should confront it," Siniora stressed.

Copies of the Ministerial Policy Statement would be distributed to MPs Tuesday and a parliamentary session is to be held starting Friday to deliberate the text, upon which the cabinet would be able to practice its duties after winning a vote of confidence from the House.

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