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.
daily said on Thursday that, 100 days after the Mikati cabinet formation, the
accumulated tension within its ranks exploded during Wednesday’s marathon
session.
According to
the daily, the cabinet session saw heated debates, which soon turned into a
verbal clash between the ministers of both the Change and Reform bloc ministers
and the National Struggle Front.
The first
heated verbal exchange erupted between Ministers Ghazy Aridi and Gibran Bassil
when the latter asked the Publics Works minister to submit a detailed table of
the projects handled by his ministry along with the relevant costs.
Aridi
opposed Bassil’s approach on the grounds that he is discrediting his work.
According to
the daily, the debate escalated between both ministers and reached a boiling
point when Bassil told Aridi: “Don’t raise your voice […] we are fed up with
your preachiness. For your information, I am a civil engineer and I know
exactly what I am saying; we have the right to obtain accurate information on
the size of the established roads, their costs and the way the funds will be
divided.”
Another
front in the verbal clash was between Faour and Nahhas.
Social
Affairs Minister Wael Abu Faour told Labor Minister Charbel Nahhas that the
model Minister, Salim Sayegh, “has already hired 400 people to look into the
poverty situation and these people are now demanding to be paid; we can’t evade
our responsibility towards them.”
Nahhas
rejected Abu Faour statements, adding that “these people were hired by a
caretaker government in contravention to applicable laws and decrees,”
appealing to Abu Faour to hand over a detailed reports on these 400 people and
on the criteria according to which they were hired.
When the
debate reached its peak, Abu Faour said “we are above suspicion, I don’t work
for any one here and I don’t have to submit any report to anyone. I will not
accept for anyone to point his finger at me; and he who thinks he represents
the blueprint for reform, he is at fault.”
Minister of
the Displaced Alaa Al-Din Terro was also engaged in the cabinet turmoil when he
told the Telecommunication Minister, “We are all equal here; every time you
take ¾ of the cabinet session; and you go through the same subject twice or
more; this is not permissible.”
As-Safir
daily reported on Thursday that during the first state visit to Russia by a
Hezbollah delegation, Loyalty to the Resistance bloc leader MP Mohammad Raad
said on Thursday “Russia’s position in the U.N. Security Council, which vetoed
a resolution to condemn Syria, has thwarted all attempts to take control over
the region.”
Raad’s
statement came following his meeting with Russian Vice Chairman of Duma
Vladimir Jirinovski during which they discussed the situation in the Middle
East, notably U.S. attempts to meddle in the region’s affairs.
A Hezbollah
delegation is scheduled to meet with Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov
on Thursday while Raad is expected to give a lecture at the Friendship
University in Moscow on Friday.
The Russian
Information Agency quoted well-informed sources as saying that a Hezbollah
delegation will meet with Russian officials to discuss the situation in
Lebanon, including the STL, as well as the situation in the Arab region and the
Russian position on Syria.
An-Nahar daily reported on Thursday that U.N. Chief
Ban Ki-Moon said that “Hezbollah’s arms became the focal point of
the political debate in Lebanon,” calling on the party leaders to hand over
their arms immediately.
In his 14th
report on the implementation of Security Council Resolution 1559, Ban Ki-Moon
also appealed to Syria and Iran, without naming them, to help turn Hezbollah
into a pure political party.
The U.N.
chief also urged President Michel Sleiman and PM Najib Mikati to take concrete
measures to implement the resolutions of the National Dialogue with regards to
the dismantling of the “Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine –General
Command” and “Fatah al-Intifada” on the Syrian-Lebanese border.
Ban Ki-moon
also decried the “violent raids and incursions” launched by the Syrian security
forces on Lebanese towns, warning of potential repercussions on Lebanon should
the Syrian crisis escalate.
The U.N.
chief urged the countries across the world to maintain their support for the
LAF and the Lebanese security forces.
Ban Ki-moon
also voiced his readiness to support Lebanon in putting his international
commitments into effect, “without adopting a selective approach in regard to
the STL.”
As-Safir
daily reported on Thursday that Libyan rebel commander Abdel Hakim Belhaj told
BBC Arabic that “according to reliable information, Imam Musa Sadr is buried in
a farm located in southern Tripoli, in Libya.
Belhaj added
that “according to old information, Sadr was transferred to Sebha and was later
buried in the castle. However, recent information confirms that Sadr is in a
farm.”
BBC Arabic’s
reporter Feras Kelani was preparing a report last March on a farm where Sadr
was once held hostage and tortured by the Pro-Gaddafi forces. During the
shooting, the channel crew was surprised at the sight of a special security
unit coming into the scene with dogs and special equipment to detect burials.
The unit has
tried to prevent the crew from shooting and told them that they are tasked with
finding bodies buried in the farm, which is located 20 kms south the Libyan
capital.
The BBC
reporter said that the farm, on which he was conducting his report, contains
bodies that he believes they belong to symbols of the Libyan Opposition and
African figures.
Al-Akhbar
daily quoted Cardinal Mar Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir on Thursday as
saying that “my
resignation was a natural step; I had to hand over responsibility to
someone
else eventually,” adding “Maronites will not be safe should they stay
divided
on all matters, as is the case today.”
Commenting
on the contradictory positions within the Maronite sect with regards to
his performance
as a Patriarch, Sfeir recalled what he failed to come to terms with,
though 20
years have passed since then, saying “they [Aounist protesters] came to
me;
reproached me, then, I had to move from Bkerke to the Patriarchal
headquarter
in Diman [...]”
Asked on the
reason behind favoring Lebanese Forces Leader Samir Geagea over other
Christian
leaders, Sfeir neither confirmed nor denied, answering “for he [Geagea]
has undertaken
a national responsibility, despite all difficulties; he brings together
young
people and breathes the spirit of freedom into them, pushing them to
free the country.”
On the other
hand, Sfeir denied that he holds any grudge against MP Michel Aoun, saying
“I love
all the people and I wish the best for everyone.”
Sfeir stressed
that Christians should support both the Sunni and Shia sects, saying “I
am not
biased to any particular people, but some are siding with external parties
so I define
my position towards them according to their stance on Lebanon.”
Sfeir added that “I am in no position to give
advice to the Shiite sect; I, however, urge them to side with Lebanon
rather
than with a foreign state.”