Introduction to the evening news 08-07-2012

Several developments marked each of the Egyptian, Syrian and Lebanese scene.     

In Egypt, President Mohammed Morsi on Sunday ordered the country's parliament to reconvene in defiance of a military decree dissolving the legislature last month following a court ruling that a third of its members were illegally elected.             

The surprise move by the Islamist Mohammed Morsi will almost certainly lead to a clash with the powerful generals who formally handed power to him on June 30. Morsi's defiance of a ruling by the country's highest court could backfire, leading to charges that he has no respect for the judiciary.       

Turning to the Syrian events, the Syrian army launched maneuvers, using missiles fired from the sea and coast, as announced by Syrian Defense Minister Dawud Abdallah Rahijia.           

“Naval Forces conducted an operational live fire exercise on Saturday, using missiles launched from the sea and coast, helicopters and missile boats, simulating a scenario of repelling a sudden attack from the sea," Syrian news agency SANA said, adding that maneuvers would continue for several days.        

This event comes simultaneously with UN-Arab Envoy Kofi Annan’s arrival in Syria and just before his statements to the French daily le Monde during which he announced "clearly, we have not succeeded. And maybe there is no guarantee that we will succeed.”       

As for Lebanon, tomorrow’s cabinet session will mark a turning point as the attendance of the Change and Reform bloc MPs is brought into question amid tendency to attend the session. However, MP Michel Aoun will have the final say, which remains undisclosed.      

The thorny issues of telecom data and Sheikh Abd al-Wahed killings will also be the focus of talks during the cabinet session.       

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