belonged to Fatah al Islam, an al Qaeda inspired group that fought the army last year for 105 days.
In other developments:
- President Suleiman and his accompanying delegation have returned to Beirut last night. They were treated royally in the kingdom according to ministerial sources. Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh said the Lebanese-Saudi talks did boost the bilateral relations. Public works Minister Ghazi Aridi said the talks with Saudi Arabia dealt with the Kingdom's stand on combating terrorism, backing the army and dialogue among the Lebanese factions. Sources from the delegation accompanying president Suleiman said : "The trip was very successful"
- General Michel Aoun who left to Tehran Iran on an official visit yesterday, was criticized by several Lebanese leaders for his unjustified attacks against Saudi Arabia and for giving Iran a clean bill of health for its behavior in Lebanon
- The reconciliation meeting between Samir Geagea , leader of the Lebanese Forces and Suleiman Franjiyeh leader of the Marada will place after General Aoun and president Suleiman return from their overseas trips. The meeting will be chaired by president .Geagea dropped his objection to the participation of Aoun in the reconciliation meeting when he said: If Franjiyeh wants gen. Aoun to participate in our meeting for personal, moral and emotional reasons then we have no objections
- The massive deployment of troops by Syria along the northern Lebanese-Syrian borders continues to get international attention , but Syria insists that the aim is to prevent smuggling.
- The reconciliation meeting between Hariri and Nasrallah could take place soon after Hariri returns to Lebanon according to al Mustaqbal members of the parliament .
Tuesday
22:45 US State department spokesman welcomed cautiously Syria's decree on establishing diplomatic relations with Lebanon and said both countries need to demarcate their common borders
22:36 Ministry of Interior announced that a Cyprus Helicopter will arrive at 9:00 am to help in extinguishing the fires
22:21 Fires erupt in the forests of Bintail and Lahfad in Jubail province and the civil defense is facing difficulties in controlling them
22:12 MP Sahili told Al Manar TV: Lebanese at 18 become accountable under the law but by withholding their right to vote we are denying them the right to express their political opinion
20:03 Siniora says progress has been made on Syrian-Lebanese relations. He added " issuing the decree was an essential step to bolster the bilateral ties on an equal basis of mutual respect. This is what Lebanon and the Lebanese have always wanted.” He was referring to the decree by Assad on diplomatic relations with Lebanon
16:15 President Michel Suleiman expressed his relief over the announcement by Assad that he will establish an embassy in Beirut, hoping the decision would restore the “bright” relations between the two countries.
16:14 Forest fires in Dibbiyeh area injure four: Three Lebanese soldiers and a firefighter
15:29 LBC : Interior Minister Ziad Baroud declares Dibbiye village and its surroundings in the Chouf a disaster area . Baroud said that the civil defense forces were facing difficulties extinguishing the huge fires raging in the village because of a lack of personnel and limited technical resources.
13:55 Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh says Lebanese-Syrian relations are more brotherly than ever.
13:42 Pope Benedict XVI will meet with President Michel Sleiman on October 30 at the Vatican.
13:32 Mustaqbal Movement leader Saad Hariri flew back to Beirut at midday.
13:30 MP Walid Jumblat hailed Assad’s announcement establishing diplomatic ties and said he hoped border demarcation would be soon finalized.
13:20 A Lebanese army helicopter was brought in to help put out forest fires in Iqlim Kharroub. Lebanon also requested help from Cyprus.
13:00 Geagea said in Cairo that he discussed with Mubarak the issues of Shebaa Farms and Syrian troop buildup which is a “moral pressure” on the residents of northern Lebanon with elections nearing.
12:52 A cluster bomb was found between the Western Bekaa towns of Manara and Sultan Yaqoub.
12:50 Israeli warplanes violated Lebanese airspace when they flew at medium altitude over the western and central sectors of south Lebanon. Jets also flew low over Tyre.
12:20 Mario Aoun says FPM will accept Iranian aid because Saudis support March 14. “Why should we reject financial aid from parties that share our political views?” he asked.. Aoun also hinted that Iran will finance their 2009 election campaign
12:14 Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh will visit Damascus on Wednesday to issue a joint statement setting a date for an exchange of ambassadors
12:10 Michel Aoun meets deputy head of the Iranian Shoura Council since the Council’s head Ali Larijani is abroad.
11:45 A meeting is underway between Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Cairo.
11:39 Hezbollah MP Amin Cherri : Claiming that Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah will replace Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir’s role is cheap”.
11:00 MP Azzam Dandachi on Future TV : Condemned MP Michel Aoun’s visit to Tehran this weekend, and expressed surprise that Aoun would make such a trip.
11:00 Fire in the Chouf threatens residents and schools.
10:31 Syrian President Bashar al-Assad issues a resolution about establishing diplomatic ties with Lebanon and opening a Syrian embassy in Lebanon.
10:18 Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh heads to Damascus on Wednesday.
9:30am Saudi ambassador to Lebanon told Future TV that Saudi-Lebanon ties “shall remain steadfast” and reiterated that Riyadh “is at an equal distance from everybody.”
08:47 Minister Aridi told Okaz: King Abdullah assured president Suleiman that the kingdom stands at equal distance from all the Lebanese
08:43 Huge fire in Dbiyee -Serhbal and the Lebanese army and civil defense are trying to control and extinguish the fire
08:36 MP Boulos told VOL: Aoun and his Iranian and Syrian backed allies are using the arms for tactical aims
08:24 MP Franjiyeh told VOL: The protection of Lebanon will be accomplished through the implementation of UN 1701 , because this resolution protects us against Israel in the south and against terrorism in the north and provides Lebanon with the neutrality required in the regional struggle
08:15 Al Hayat : The most salient issues discussed during the Saudi Lebanese summit was the electricity problems and finding suitable solutions in addition to investments in Lebanon and developing it
07:53 The family of Abdel Ghani Jawhar requested that he should surrender to justice . The family ruled out his involvement in the grenade explosion
06:00 Geagea arrived in Cairo
05:53 King Abdullah promised to continue with his social help for the young and to find them employment opportunities
05:44 saudi Arabia promised to help in reactivation of the Zahrani oil refinery
05:41 Suleiman's trip to Saudi Arabia reinstated the warm and distinguished relations between the 2 countries
05:32 UNIFIL is optimistic of reaching an agreement about the withdrawal of Israel from Ghajar
05:32 Geagea left to Cairo on an official visit
05:30 Suleiman expressed his desire in reactivation of the Zahrani oil refinery. King Abdullah promised to look into the matter and what needs be done
Monday
21:48 President Michel Suleiman arrives at Beirut airport after concluding a two-day official visit to Saudi Arabia.
16:20 Police confiscated 200 scooters in Tripoli for lacking registration documents.
16:00 Interior Minister Ziad Baroud is chairing a meeting of The Central Security Council
15:20 PM Siniora praised the security forces for arresting the terrorist cell in north Lebanon.
15:15 Ghanem: Selection of the members of the Constitutional Council will be from amongst the judges who have reached the legal age and professors of constitutional law and political science and international law
15:14 Public works Minister Ghazi Aridi said the talks with Saudi Arabia dealt with the Kingdom's stand on combating terrorism, backing the army and dialogue among the Lebanese factions.
15:10 Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh said the Lebanese-Saudi talks did boost the bilateral relations.
Tags: Hezbollah, Iran, Lebanon Files, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Ya Libnan
