Introduction to the evening news 11-12-2011

The weekend holds happy and unhappy endings:      

Starting with happy endings, Ahmad Zeidan was freed today and headed for Ain Tineh after Speaker Nabih Berri had played a key role in his release. However the conditions of his release are still shrouded in mystery given that the abductors have left the picture without knowing how an abductee could possibly be released without having the abductor(s) captured.

As for unhappy endings, they are numerous: First, the tension between the cabinet and labor unions due to the wage adjustment decision which drew the condemnation of the syndicates. Second, the FPM-Hezbollah relation which is marked with escalating differences. Despite mutual attempts to contain these differences, they are being reflected through political positions even if it is still too early to call the fate of their alliance into question.   

On the external front, the Syrian opposition called for a general strike at a time when regions near the Syrian-Jordanian border saw clashes between the Syrian Army and defectors.   

As for international developments, tens of thousands of Russian protesters rallied in Moscow and other cities to protest the reported election fraud.