Solana met with MP Walid Jumblat in Clemencea and later with President Michel Suleiman. He will hold separate talks on Saturday with Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and Hizbullah MP Hussein Hajj Hassan, an EU representative said.

The meeting with Hajj Hassan will be the first such high level contact between an EU official and Hizbullah, the official said.

After talks with Jumblat, Solana commended the Lebanese government for its "wise management of the parliamentary elections." He also praised Jumblat's "commitment to his pledges."

Solana expressed hope for "a new page in the Lebanese political life."

Prior to his departure, Mitchell met with Solana at Beirut International Airport.

News Briefs

9:25pm The Lebanese cabinet adopted the 2009 budget.

9:15pm VDL: Initial investigation revealed that the sender of the booby trapped package to the General Security Department headquarters is called Mahdi al-Hajj Hassan.

9:00pm Hizbullah denied it was involved in the attack on Maya Kairouz in Jbeil.

8:15pm LBC quoted ministerial sources as saying they expected the adoption of the 2009 budget during today’s session.

7:10pm Solana held talks with MP Michel Aoun in Rabieh. Asked about the fate of Lebanese Christians if the naturalization of the Palestinians took place, Solana said, “The fate of the Christians is the continuity of their distinguished status. As for the Palestinian cause, I think that it would be near and not so far.”

7:10pm MP Saad Hariri received a telegram from French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner congratulating him and March 14 on winning the elections. Kouschner said, “The success of the electoral process in Lebanon contributes to consolidating democracy and the rule of law.” Kouchner stressed that his country “will continue to support Lebanon, both politically and economically.”

6:05pm Cabinet goes into session in Baabda Palace presided by Suleiman with the participation of Saniora

5:58pm MP Saad Hariri met Greek Orthodox Archbishop Elias Awdeh and expressed hope for expanded dialogue in order to establish democracy.

5:55pm Suleiman and Saniora hold a closed meeting prior to Cabinet session in Baabda.

5:20pm Mitchell left for Damascus.

5:00pm A closed meeting is underway between Solana, Mitchell, Sisone and EU Ambassador Patrick Renauld at the Rafik Hariri International Airport.

4:37pm Solana left Baabda Palace without giving a statement and is currently holding talks with Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh.

4:20pm Two people were injured in Nahr el-Bared camp when a remnant ordnance from the war exploded.

4:05pm The army and security forces have been deployed across Sidon as part of wide man-haunt for fugitives involved in acts of arson and violence following the elections. Sidon has witnessed a series of security incidents, resulting in several injuries, following the elections in which Prime Minister Fouad Siniora and Education Minister Bahia Hariri won the two Sunni seats in the city, excluding MP Osama Saad from the parliament.

3:05pm President Michel Suleiman met with Solana and the accompanying delegation. Talks focused on the EU role in reviving the peace process in the Middle East.

3:20pm Solana met with MP Walid Jumblat in Clemenceau.

2:27pm EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana arrived in Beirut for talks with Lebanese officials as well as a Hizbullah delegation.

1:50pm Mitchell meets MP Saad Hariri in Qoreitem.

1:00pm Mitchell after meeting Saniora: No Middle East deals at Lebanon’s expense. US looks forward to working with new Lebanese cabinet and to ensuring Mideast peace

12:34pm Hariri: We don’t need Arab initiatives to keep up dialogue among us. The dialogue table is concerned with discussing the Defense Strategy.

12:30pm Hariri after meeting Sfeir stressed that the parliamentary majority is “real and not illusory.”

12:15pm Mitchell is currently holding talks with Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh at Bustros Palace.

11:30am MP Saad Hariri is meeting with Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir in Bkirki.

11:15am Mitchell is meeting with Prime Minister Fouad Saniora.

11:05am The package at the General Security Department headquarters contained 200g of explosives that did not detonate due to technical failure. According to a statement by the directorate, a note on the package said it contained CDs, but was actually packed with 150 grams of TNT and C4. The statement added that the explosives were connected to a gas tube and a timer set to detonate, but did not explode due to a technical failure.

11:00am Mitchell and the accompanying delegation left Baabda Palace without making a statement. Mitchell met with Suleiman for 40 minutes.

10:55am Future news: A military expert is inspecting a suspicious package found in the General Security Department headquarters.

10:15am An Israeli missile left over from the 2006 war was found in the Sidon village of Sharehbil. The missile was taken to a military facility for inspection.

9:40am U.S. Middle East envoy George Mitchell arrived in Beirut from Amman and immediately went into talks with President Michel Suleiman.

8:30am Nabil de Freij to VDL: Hariri is the strongest candidate for the premiership. March 14 forces will hold several meetings to adopt a stance on the issue.

7:40am MP Robert Ghanem to VDL: The president should be the arbiter. The cabinet should function in a teamwork spirit.

7:30am MP Anwar al-Khalil to VDL: Speaker Nabih Berri is expected to return to his post, MP Saad Hariri will most probably become premier and the budget could be adopted during today’s cabinet session.

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