Lebanese police on Sunday arrested the suspected mastermind behind blasts in southern district of the capital that killed dozens of people in November, a security source said.

The man, identified as Abu Talha, was accused of being the chief "coordinator" of a "cell that prepared a string of explosions in Lebanon" including in Beirut's Burj al-Barajneh district, the security source said.

He was seized in a special operation carried out by an elite unit of the Internal Security Forces (ISF) in the northern port city of Tripoli, the source told AFP.

The explosions in the densely populated neighbourhood of Burj al-Barajneh on November 12 killed 44 people. They were claimed by the Islamic State jihadist group.

According to the security source, Abu Talha "was in communication with IS in Raqa," the de facto Syrian capital of the jihadist group's self-styled "caliphate".

Al Bawaba

Lebanese bombshell Maya Diab turned heads on Friday night after performing on the TV singing competition Star Academy.

The sexy senorita made three wardrobe changes on the night, leaving less to the imagination with each new outfit.

First Maya came out dressed in a see-through fishnet dress, which showed off her long pins and more than what some of us might have wanted to see.

by dailyStar.com.lb

Sierra Leone reportedly informed Lebanon that it has agreed to take in the small Mediterranean country's trash, local daily As-Safir said Saturday.

The Lebanese Foreign Ministry received a letter Thursday from Sierra Leone authorities informing it of the country's willingness to accept Lebanon's waste.

The letter, which was originally directed to Holland’s Howa BV firm, is allegedly signed by an adviser for Sierra Leone President Ernest Bai Koroma.

As-Safir newspaper said that Freetown, Sierra Leone's capital, consented on the condition that the waste be free of toxins, underlining that the approval remains at a preliminary stage until Sierra Leone's government and president confirm the deal.

Lebanon is bound by the U.N. Basel Convention on hazardous waste

The Associated Press, Beirut Saturday, 9 January 2016 Lebanese security officials say masked gunmen have shot and killed a police intelligence officer …