The following are summaries of today's major stories
published in the Arabic press. LBCI does not edit press digest articles for
content, giving English-language readers insight into the various views
expressed in newspapers across the Arab world.
An-Nahar daily quoted General Labor Union Head Ghassan Ghosn
on Wednesday as commenting on the dispute between the Union and the economic
bodies.
“We are disputed over 25, 000 LBP,” he said, confirming that
the strike will be held as scheduled.
The head of the GLC insinuated that “should we fail to reach
an agreement, there is a tendency for the GLC to gather all demonstrators in
the heart of Beirut’s Downtown on New Year’s Eve in a bid to relay the message
to everyone.”
Al-Akhbar daily quoted sources involved in the recent meeting
between Hezbollah’s leader and a Maronite delegation on Wednesday as saying
that the 3-hour meeting mainly tackled the Lebanese and regional situation and
dwelt on the events in Syria as well as the Christian situation there.
Sources confirmed that the participants did not discuss the
issue of [Hezbollah’s] arms on the grounds that Maronite Patriarch Beshara Rai
has a clear and realistic position in this regard and calls for addressing the
reasons behind the presence of these arms.
“Nasrallah took an interest in voicing the position of his
Party on different matters; he tackled with his visitors the concerns of both
parties,” the sources added.
According to the daily, the sources reported that the Syrian
issue was the main topic addressed by the meeting.
“Rai’s representatives stressed the importance of
Muslim-Christian coexistence and the preservation of the Christian presence in
the region, a topic that lead to the discussion of the situation in Syria. The
visitors voiced their concerns over the fall of the regime and relayed the
position of Rai who hopes for a real Arab Spring, for now Arabs are going
through a severe Arab winter,” the sources added.
The daily quoted one of the participants as saying that
Nasrallah reassured the delegation that the situation in Syria is improving
after the latter voiced fears over possible Christian displacement in Syria.
An-Nahar daily learned on Wednesday that the Lebanese
delegation that will be part of the Arab monitors, tasked with overseeing the
implementation of the Arab initiative for Syria, will be comprised of 5
military personnel, adding that a similar number of law specialists and human
rights experts will be selected.
The daily reported that Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour will
table the nature of the delegation’s mission during the nearest cabinet
session.
Ministerial sources confirmed that they will table the issue
of wage adjustment during Wednesday’s cabinet session, whether an agreement was
reached ahead of the session or not.
The sources voiced hope that the president will launch an
initiative in this regard after the GLC had entrusted him with the issue amid
the economic bodies’ obstinacy, adding that Labor Minister Charbel Nahhas did
not exert any concrete effort to prompt both sides to reach agreement on the
matter.
Al-Liwaa daily quoted official sources from the Union as
saying that the meeting held between the GLC and the economic bodies did not
amount to final results that would see the issuance of a wage decree amended in
line with conditions set by the Shura Council.
Al-Mustaqbal daily quoted Kataeb MP Nadim Gemayel on
Wednesday as wondering “does [Change and Reform bloc Leader MP Michel] Aoun
need us to cry over 100, 000 dead in order to raise his voice demanding a
solution for the chaos of illegitimate arms?”
“It is not the first
time that Aoun proves to have a short memory […] we must remind him that 19
security incidents have occurred in Beirut since May 7,” he added.