Introduction to the evening news 19-01-2012

Tonight Syria is awaiting the Arab monitors’ decisive report that will determine whether the monitors are able to go on with their mission or whether they will have to draw on the experience of the United Nations, according to the Arab League’s Deputy Secretary-General.           

Yet, the decisive content of the report does not mean that the meeting of the ministerial committee on Saturday then that of the Arab League council on Sunday will decide whether to develop the monitors’ mission or to call for an international intervention due to the Arab disputes and the red lines set by the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov two days ago.          
In parallel, a Turkish-Iranian cooperation channel emerged to absorb the escalating tensions in the Middle East. Today, the Muslim Brotherhood’s monitor in Syria revealed that Turkey is the mediator assigned by Iranians to negotiate with the Muslim Brotherhood on the participation in power while guaranteeing that President Assad stays in power.          

The Iranian minister of foreign affairs visited Turkey today to deliberate on the nuclear issue, assuring that Iran will never shut down the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, the U.S. Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff arrived in Israel at a time when allies are coordinating their efforts to curb the Iranian nuclear program and to rein in the Israeli desire to carry out a unilateral military operation against Iran.           

In Lebanon, the settlement of the wage adjustment issue dominated all the other chronic and urgent issues despite the escalating risk of collapsing of the crumbling buildings in all of the regions. What will happen after the cabinet’s decision? When will the wage decree be issued and published in the official newspaper? Will the increase be applied with a retroactive effect or starting from 2012, as recommended by the State Shura Council?           

We’ll start from this issue with the figures of the increase that will go right into the citizens’ pockets.