to Hezbollah in Lebanon .
Barak told Israel Radio yesterday : "I repeat, Syria is turning over lots of weapons to Hezbollah. Israel should take decisions if some of these weapon shipments pose a threat to the fragile balance of powers."
In other developments:
- The arrest by the Lebanese army of the cell leader of Israeli Mossad spy agency highlighted Israeli espionage activity and the threat this southern neighbor poses to Lebanon and the region
- The second session of the dialogue talks scheduled for November 5,2008 is accelerating the reconciliation activity in Lebanon. Democratic Gathering parliament bloc leader and progressive socialist party chief MP Walid Jumblatt will soon be meeting with Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah
according to local reports. Youth and Sports Minister Talal Arslan, who returned from a trip to Indonesia is reportedly trying to arrange the meeting
- The reconciliation between Geagea and Franjiyeh continues to face obstacles. The Maronite League has not given up , but Syria has been accused of blocking the reconciliation effort .
- The US raid against Syria continues to be the focus of the media in Syria.
- Strategic positioning for the upcoming 2009 elections is continuing . Yesterday former PM Omar Karami said after meeting former minister Suleiman Franjiyeh “No doubt … everyone is working for peaceful elections” in 2009. He added : “Seven months separate us from the elections,”
Sunday
20:18 Maronite League chief Tarabay expressed optimism about intera Christian reconciliations after Sfeir returned from his trip to Rome
20:30 Harb told New TV: the dialogue is needed to implement the Doha accord , to end the political impasse , to ensure the state spreads it s authority throughout the country and the wave of assassinations ends
20:00 Interior Minister Baroud confirmed receiving an invitation to visit Syria . He may most probably visit the country within weeks
20:09 Syrian-Lebanese singer George Wassouf was arrested in Sweden during the weekend on drug charges, hours before he was due to perform a concert. A lot of people came a long way, even from other countries to attend the concert. Wassouf, 46, was in possession of 30 grams of cocaine when he was arrested, according to an online report
19:33 Antoine Airout, the candidate of the opposition won the elections of the lawyers syndicate in Tripoli against the March 14 candidate who was also supported by former PM Mikati and the Islamist movements. Airout is considered a member of the Marada movement which is headed by Suleiman Franjiyeh.
19:21 PM Siniora contacts his Jordanian counterpart and meets MP Saad Hariri
18:58 Minister Gibran Bassil: Time for a historic settlement between the Christians and Syria to be spearheaded by a national Christian leader . Bassil, the son-in-law of Gen Aoun was referring to Aoun's planned visit to Syria
18:48 Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir after returning to Beirut from an official visit to Italy and the Vatican City : Let us repent to God and lets return to each other through reconciliation
ا
17:31 the newly elected head of the Tripoli syndicate of lawyers Antoine Airout visits former PM Omar Karami
16:01 Hezbollah's deputy Chief Sheikh Naim Qassem said his party is serious in its call to expand the list of participants in the dialogue talks scheduled for Nov 5 .
16:00 Antoine Airout is the new chief of the syndicate of lawyers in Tripoli. He won the elections with 474 votes against 371 for his opponent Toni Tager.
15:45 Lebanese Interior Minister Ziad Baroud to visit Syria soon to meet with his Syrian counterpart Bassam Abdul Majid
15:20 Tourism Minister Marouni returned from Kuwait where he participated in a tourism exhibition and met several Kuwaiti officials to promote tourism in Lebanon
15:00 Parliament Majority leader Leader MP Saad Hariri is currently meeting with Speaker Nabih Berri at the latter’s residencein Ain el Tinah
11:45 Lebanese Forces MP Antoine Zahra told New TV that those who continuously try to revive the tensions of the Lebanese civil war aim at stoking these conflicts . He called for either opening all war dossiers or closing them once and for all.
11:30 MP Salim Aoun told OTV: Only coordination between two states can lead to controlling borders. In reference to Syrian deployment of troops along the borders with Lebanon. He also called for representation in the dialogue talks of all parties involved in the reconciliations.
10:00 MP Marwan Hamadeh said the March 14 forces would adopt a unified stand on the issue of expanding participation in the Conference on National Dialogue before the Nov. 5 meeting.
9:45 FPM official Alain Aoun said conditions are not ripe yet for reconciliation between Marada Movement and Lebanese Forces. General Aoun has been accused of blocking the reconciliation effort of the Maronite League
8:15 The French premier is to visit Lebanon soon, the French embassy said.
8:00 PM Fouad Siniora to head to Turkey on Monday on an official visit .
Saturday
16:21 Thirteen arrest warrants have now been issued against suspects in the August Tripoli bombing, with an additional eight arrest warrants issued in absentia.
15:54 Karami After the meeting Franjiyeh told reporters that “No doubt … everyone is working for peaceful elections” in 2009. He added : “Seven months separate us from the elections,” which he said was ample time for different conditions to surface in Lebanon and that he doubted alliances would materialize before January. “The [electoral] battle depends on the circumstances and nothing can be judged now,” he said
15:04 Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblatt says the March 14 alliance remains committed to the protection of Lebanon’s independence, sovereignty and Arabism.
14:47 Former PM Omar Karami requested PM Fouad Siniora to release Islamist prisoners from Roumieh to avoid “exacerbating tension.”
14:33 Marada leader Suleiman Franjiyeh said the four generals (who are suspects in the murder of Hariri) are innocent and added" shame on government for detaining them"
Tags: Iran, Lebanon, source: Lebanon Files, source: Naharnet, source: Now Lebanon, Syria, Ya Libnan
