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.
The ministerial crisis cell, tasked with the file of the kidnapped Lebanese troops, is set to convene on Tuesday at around 5 p.m. at the Grand Serail, sources told Al-Joumhouria newspaper.
The crisis cell is due to discuss contacts being held on many levels, more specifically the initiative that had been launched by the Association of Muslim Scholars.
The sources also told the daily that Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil will not attend Tuesday’s meeting upon the request of Speaker Nabih Berri who has recently asked for keeping the Arsal captives dossier in the hands of security officials.
Sources told An-Nahar daily on Tuesday that the cabinet’s regular session to be held Thursday (December 18) will tackle the file of the kidnapped Lebanese troops and will call for the unification of mediation efforts.
“Multiple mediation efforts, exerted in the last three weeks, led to the martyrdom of security man Ali al-Bazzal,” ministerial sources said.
“Tasking the Association of Muslim Scholars with the Arsal captives dossier is out of the question, although the Lebanese state welcomes any positive effort in this regard,” the same sources said.
They added that the file is highly complicated, saying things are seemingly at a standstill as there is a lack of cooperation between the kidnappers.
Sheikh Zakaria al-Masri, a member of the Muslim Scholars Association, said there were no new developments regarding the committee’s attempt to launch negotiations to secure the release of the Arsal hostages.
“It seems that the government refuses our initiative to act as a mediator in this file,” Masri told Al-Mustaqbal daily, adding “parties among the cabinet reject this initiative for reasons that remain unknown”.
"Accordingly, the association has launched an ‘internal referendum process’ to consider the possibility of proceeding with its mediation or not,” he concluded.
National Struggle Front leader MP Walid Jumblatt voiced on Tuesday his resentment to the latest developments in the file of the kidnapped Lebanese troops, and refused to go into details.
In an interview with As-Safir newspaper, MP Jumblatt said “we don’t want to give the people empty promises as there are no new developments in the Arsal captives dossier”.