.
According to Beirut press reports the meeting could lead to a decision on cabinet lineup
The main obstacle facing the cabinet lineup is the allocation of the finance and telecommunications ministries. Aoun has been after both ministries, but the March 14 alliance is concerned that allocating such ministries to a Hezbollah ally could present security issues for the country.
Yesterday , caretaker Finance Minister Mohammed Shatah said the new government would only be achieved if the principles declared by Hariri are respected.
"Otherwise, the process would be delayed regardless of the outcome of the Saudi-Syrian summit," Shatah said.
On a proposal that suggested portfolio rotation among political parties, Shatah said he rejects the concept of "monopolizing" any Cabinet seat, including Finance.
"But, at the same time, that doesn't mean the finance ministry should be granted to a party that wants to impede the government job as a team," he added.
Funding of all the projects of the all the ministries is always subject to the final approval of the ministry of finance and for this reason there is concern within the March 14 majority alliance that “power hungry General Aoun could turn this ministry into a bottleneck “
Jumblatt criticizes the Noble .peace prize awarded to Obama
Progressive socialist party leader MP Walid Jumblatt joined the US Republican party in criticizing the Noble . peace prize awarded to U.S. president, Barak Obama but for a different reason…saying he hasn't made any peaceful achievement in the Middle East.
"If one examines his record , he would ‘t find any major peaceful achievement for U.S. President Barak Obama " Jumblatt wrote in PSP’s al-Anbaa weekly .
"Although I was among the first who welcomed his election as president of the United States … and although his address to the Islamic world in Cairo was positive he was unable to make any achievement in the Middle East," Jumblatt wrote . “George Mitchell has once again returned home empty handed." He added
Monday
11:55 pm Der Spiegel : U.S. troops stopped a German freighter early October in the Gulf of Suez carrying 8 Iranian containers of ammunition suitable for Kalashnikov rifles bound to Syria / Hezbollah
11:20pm conflicting report about the number of casualties in Teir Felsay explosion and the cause of the explosion. Hezbollah sources earlier confirmed that there were casualties but the group later denied the presence of any casualties . Last July, an explosion at a suspected Hezbollah arms depot in southern Lebanon near the Israeli border raised concerns about the group's weapons caches.
11:17pm Hezbollah denied the presence of any casualties from the explosion in Teir Felsay and said only one was wounded
10:50pm UNIFIL spokesperson Bouzayan : UNIFIL has been notified about the explosion in eir Felsay
10:45pm Qazzi told OTV: Mufti Jouzou should be referred to the courts
10:42 pm Hezbollah sources told OTV: The explosion in the outskirts of Teir Felsay, Tyre resulted in several casualties
10:28pm Al Arabiyeh: the explosion in Teir Felsay was the result of explosion of ammunition in the house of the Hezbollah official
10:13pm NNA : The explosion in Teir Felsay completely destroyed the building of اAbdel Nasser Eassa
10:10pm LBC: 5 casualties The explosion in the residence of Saeed Nasser in Teir Felsay, Tyre , resulted in 5 casualties including Nasser himself and his son.
9:53pm OTV: An explosion of remnants of war in the peripheries of Teir Felsay , many casualties reported
9:48pm An explosion in Saeed Nasser’s residence in Teir Felsay due to ammunition according to LBC.
9:40pm 8 people were wounded in an explosion in a residence between Teir Felsay and Zrariye villages.
9:35pm Future News: An explosion in a Hezbollah official’s residence in Teir Felsay in Tyre.
9:30pm OTV: An explosion in a Hezbollah official’s residence in Teir Felsay in Tyre. Reports of a casualty and 3 wounded people.
9:15pm Several people wounded due to an explosion in a Hezbollah official’s residence in Teir Felsay area in Tyre.
9:05pm VDL: A big explosion sound was heard in Tayr Felsay village in Tyre area. Reports said it may have resulted from a Hezbollah arms cache explosion.
8:50pm The new French ambassador to Lebanon, Denis Pietton, arrived in Beirut to replace former Ambassador André Parant.
8:00pm MP George Adwan told Future News: There’s an apparent determination to cooperate with PM-designate Hariri but the problem lies in the application.
7:10 pm NBN: Caretaker Minister Baroud stressed Monday that he will not join the new cabinet unless it is a "national unity" government, but also stressed that any delay in forming the new cabinet may lead to negative effects on the forthcoming Municipal elections
6:30 pm A Libyan man threw a bomb at an Italian army barracks in Milan early on Monday and was injured in the explosion, losing one of his hands, police said. .
6:11pm President suleiman has been meeting with PM Siniora since 6 pm
5:05pm Prosecutor General Saeed Mirza turned over the 10 Ain al-Rummaneh incident detainees to Mount Lebanon's Public Prosecution to continue the legal action.
4:35pm Army Commander General Jean Qahwaji discussed the general situations with U.N. Special Coordinator for Lebanon Michael Williams.
3:10pm Speaker Nabih Berri arrives in UAE after leaving Qatar.
3:05pm Aoun during a chat with reporters: The atmosphere is very positive and talks will continue.
3:00pm Hariri left Rabiyeh without making any statement.
2:21pm MP Walid Jumblat wore in the al-Anbaa: U.S. President Barack Obama didn’t make any peaceful achievement in order to deserve the Nobel Peace Prize.
1:15pm PM-designate Saad Hariri is meeting with FPM leader Michel Aoun in Rabiyeh.
11:45 Rahbe head of municipality said the family of Joseph Skaff, who has been kidnapped in Nigeria, informed him that Skaff was released and will return to Lebanon soon.
10:35 MP Nabil de Freij to Future News: The opposition considers the telecom ministry more important than any key ministry.
8:40 VOL: 12 people were food poisoned in Iqlim al-Kharroub after eating at a restaurant in Daraya.
8:30 MP Farid al-Khazen told VOL: The Hariri-Aoun meeting will be held soon. The telecom ministry is not the only problem. This week is the best for government formation. Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir and the majority insist on no return to the pre-election results. A Cabinet lineup will be announced before Oct. 20.
7:30 MP Marwan Hamadeh to VDL: This week is the best for government formation. Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir and the majority insist on no return to the pre-election results. A Cabinet lineup will be announced before Oct. 20.
Sunday
11:10 pm US Assistant Secretary State for Middle East Affairs Jeffrey Feltman has welcomed the Syrian-Saudi summit's interest in the new Lebanese government line up, describing his talks held ten days ago with the Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal al-Meqdad as positive and constructive.
11:00 pm AP: Turkey has called off an international military drill because it opposed Israel's participation, Israeli defense officials said Sunday, a move that sent strained relations between the two nations to a new low.
9:40pm MP Boutros Harb: the new relations between the Arab countries create a comfortable inter Lebanese atmosphere , because the Arab countries have a great influence internally. We still have not seen the results of the Saudi Syrian summit
