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.
Prime Minister Tammam Salam declared that it is not too late to elect a new president, noting that the elections can still be held before the 25th of May, on the condition that the parliamentary blocs approach this duty with good will.
In this regard, Salam called on the leaders of political parties to reach an agreement over a candidate who will receive a majority of the votes.
In a statement to
an-Nahar daily, Salam said that failing to reach agreement over one candidate does not mean that the presidential elections will fail to be held, but on the contrary, “whoever seeks to submit his candidacy must do so, and the one who receives the majority of the votes shall become president,” he added.
“The cabinet will not rule in case of vacuum and the political atmosphere after May 25 should the presidential elections not be held will be different and may affect the public institutions’ work,” he stated.
Al-Joumhouria daily quoted a senior diplomatic source at the United Nations as saying that the International mediator Lakhdar Brahimi will remain in his position until the date of the presidential elections in Syria, noting that the UN is working on finding a successor.
The said source stressed the need to set up a new plan to define the parameters of the upcoming phase in Syria’s political process, adding that Iran’s influence in Syria is far greater than Russia’s power.
“Tehran provides the Syrian regime with large military support, through sending daily arms shipments,” the sources said.
In this regard, the source told the daily that Iran played an important role in the agreement reached in Homs to withdraw all the rebel fighters from the city, stressing that it will also a have major role in every future political process in Syria.
On another note, the same source declared that the western states are preparing a draft resolution in order to allow humanitarian aid to cross the Syrian borders, without seeking the authorization of the Syrian government.
Member of the Union Coordinating Committee Hanna Gharib said that the deputies will be subject to a test next Wednesday, noting that “those who fail in the test will be exposed before the public opinion and forced to bear the responsibilities.”
In a statement to
as-Safir newspaper, Gharib stressed that May 14’s demonstration will be unprecedented; pointing out that a wide participation in the strike will be registered in order to show solidarity with the public sector.
Member of the committee tasked with discussing the series of ranks and salaries, MP Ghazi Youssef stressed that the committee did what is possible, compared to the capabilities of the government, noting that the figures reached are close to the ones included in the formula prepared by the cabinet of Najib Mikati.
MP Youssef added that “the items disregarded by the committee are simply illogical and cannot be accepted,” such as the item pertaining to the six ranks to be granted to the retirees and the teachers.
In a statement to
as-Safir daily, Youssef stressed that the draft law approved by the parliamentary committee is the best possible formula that can relatively bridge the gap between the administrative employees, the teachers and the military personnel.
However, MP Youssef said that the escalatory measures taken by the Union Coordinating Committee are not justified, and a number of its demands are not lawful.
“I do not expect a wide participation in the strike of the public sector; they must understand and believe that there is not enough money in the state’s treasury to cover their demands,” he said, stressing that the committee seeks to prevent the collapse of the state’s finance due to decisions taken on emotional grounds.