parliamentary bloc leaders to get their blessings
The 30-member cabinet will have 15 ministers from the Hariri - led March 14 majority group , 10 from the Hezbollah- led opposition and five nominated by President Michel Suleiman.
This means that no party will have veto power in the new government and that Suleiman will play the role of the referee.
Monday
0:18 am French president Sarkozy in congratulating Hariri : The Lebanese people are awaiting the reforms of this cabinet
00:10 am MTV: Kataeb party may accept the ministry of Social affairs but will probably withdraw from March 14 alliance
11:49pm president Suleiman called Amin Gemayel after learning that Sayegh, the kataeb party minister of social affairs may resign from the cabinet
10;41: Aoun : Hezbollah arms will not be a subject for discussion in the ministerial statement but will be dealt with during the dialogue talks
10:40 pm : The Kataeb party meeting continues at the Saifi headquarters to decide its position with regards to the new cabinet
10:32 : Aoun told al Jazeera : I feel comfortable with Hariri and we will cooperate for the sake of the nation and national unity
10:00 pm - Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today urged Lebanon's new national unity government to fully implement Security Council resolution 1701
7:41 pm Speaker Berri leaves Baabda, cabinet lineup decree will be issued soon
7:28pm Speaker Nabih Berri joined the Suleiman-Hariri meeting in Baabda to participate in the talks about the cabinet lineup.
7:27pm Berri arrived at Baabda palace to be present during the announcement of the cabinet decree
7:13pm Al Manar : PM designate submits the cabinet line-up to president Suleiman
7:07 pm Harb: What I aspire to is to serve Lebanon
7:05pm NBN The ministry of displaced will be given to Imad Wakim of the LF and the ministry of culture goes to Michel Pharaon
7:03 pm NBN : Berri is on his way to Baabda palace
7:01 Hariri arrived at Baabda palace
7:10 pm An American Muslim group says it has established a fund to benefit the families of victims in the Fort Hood shootings.
7: 00 MP George Adwan after march 14 meeting with Harb: We extend our hand to the March 14 alliance to tell them that Lebanon cannot survive without the constitution and without institutions. The state alone protects everybody. We wish to appoint MP Harb as minister in the new cabinet, since his presence is very important for us as March 14 alliance. The Lebanese Forces will keep Ibrahim Najjar as Justice Minister.
6:55 pm Soueid : due to the complicated situation that will be facing the new government we have asked MP Boutros Harb to represent the Christians of March 14 in the new cabinet
6:53 pm Cadbury Plc, the maker of Dairy Milk chocolate, rejected Kraft Foods Inc.'s unsolicited takeover offer of 9.8 billion pounds ($16 billion) after Kraft stuck to the terms of its initial bid.
6:50 pm New TV: Hariri completed his consultations and is currently at the center House with many media representatives and is expected to announc etonight the formation of the cabinet
6:45 pm A US Army hospital spokesman said the man suspected in a deadly shooting spree at Fort Hood is conscious and able to talk.
6:40pm New TV: the ministry of education will be the share of the Kataeb party and will be headed by MP Sami Gemayel
6:40pm Future TV: The decree of the new cabinet will be announced tonight from Baabda Palace.
5:30 pm MP Walid Jumblatt: we should form a national committee to end political sectarianism in order to free the Lebanese regime from the sectarian chains and a new electoral law should replace the existing one
5:25pm VOL: MP Boutros Harb may accept to handle Labor portfolio.
4:45pm Free Lebanon Radio: The new government formation will be announced tonight after the rush of contacts and satisfying March 14 Christian forces.
4:00 pm representatives from the Christians of March 14 alliance will hold a meeting at 5:30 p.m. at MP Boutros Harb’s residence, to confirm their support for allocating a ministerial portfolio to Harb.
3:19 pm LBC: another meeting is expected between Gemayel and Hariri to discuss the ministry of education
3;14 LF sources: LF will not give up its Maronite seat in the cabinet except to MP Boutros Harb and a March 14 delegation is expected to visit him today to inform him that they want him in the cabinet
3;13: MP Boutros Harb is insisting on the ministry of Justice otherwise he does not want to be in the cabinet and nominated Nassib Lahoud to replace him
3:12pm PM-designate Hariri after meeting with Patriarch Sfeir: The Patriarch is Lebanon's conscience and inshallah (God willing) we shall witness the formation of the cabinet soon.
2:48pm New TV: Hariri will meet MP Boutros Harb at 5:30 pm and will then head to Baabda palace . It is expected that the government decree will be announced this evening
2:45pm PM-designate Saad Hariri arrived in in Bkirki to meet with Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir
2:20pm Aoun announced that his ministers are the following: Gebran Bassil (energy), Fadi Abboud (tourism), Youssef Saadeh (State minister), Charbel Nahas (telecom) and Apraham Dedeyan (industry).
2:15 pm: patient Joseph Haddad at the Jebal Lubnan hospital is in urgent need of O+ blood
2:15pm VOL: Aoun handed over the list of his ministers to Hariri during lunch.
2:00pm The ministry of foreign affairs was informed that the municipality of Ottawa named one of the city’s streets “Lebanon Cedar” to honor the Lebanese community there.
1:00pm Cabinet could be formed as early as by Monday evening after Hariri meets with all the parliamentary bloc leaders to get their blessings
12:04pm Hariri arrived in Rabiyeh for talks with Aoun who is expected to submit his list of candidates to fill ministerial seats in the new cabinet.
11:50 OTV: PM-designate Saad Hariri is expected to arrive in Rabiyeh within minutes.
11:40 Pakradounian says Tashnaq Party has not yet finalized its portfolio share
9:30 Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir criticized members of the Lebanese political community for fighting over government posts.
9:00 MP Antoine Zahra told VOL: MP Boutros Harb’s presence in the cabinet is an added value for the government
7:45 MP Alain Aoun told VOL: Bassil will be the only person in the new cabinet who has lost the elections. There are no problems over the government’s policy statement.
Sunday
10:10 If Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas makes good on his declaration that he won't run in the upcoming Palestinian presidential election, Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad and his entire cabinet would resign
10:00 pm The US House narrowly passed landmark health care legislation Saturday night to expand coverage to tens of millions who lack it and place tough new restrictions on the insurance industry.
9:48pm Minister Aoun told "new TV": General Aoun is the only one who has the names of ministers and will submit to Hariri tomorrow. I will not be a minister in the next government
9:00 pm MP George Adwan: It will be very difficult for us to give up Ministry of Justice and ispecilly because we have give up the Maronite seat . We support the Phalange claim for the Ministry of Education
8:30 pm LBC ; MP Okab Sakr said he expects Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri to announce the new government on Tuesday, says lineup “fair” to March 14 Christians
