Lebanon's President Emile Lahoud (C) poses with the army's Chief of Staff Michel Sleiman (2nd L) and officers during Independence Day celebrations in Baabda, near Beirut, November 22, 2007. (Dalatinohra/Reuters) Please Click Read More fore more pictures

Lebanese MPs are facing a deadline of midnight to appoint a new president. However, mediators fear rival camps will fail to reach a deal, plunging the country into a deeper political crisis. Attempts to elect a new president over the past two months have been hampered by rivalry between  pro and anti-government supporters.

"A miracle is still possible tomorrow but I think it'll be a bit complicated," said French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner. A vote in parliament has been scheduled for 1300 (1100 GMT) on Friday, 11 hours before the end of current pro-Syrian president Emile Lahoud's term.

No compromise The election of a president requires a two-thirds majority, which means that the anti-Syrian ruling bloc - with its slim majority - cannot force its preferred candidate through parliament. A deal with the opposition is therefore required. The rival factions cannot agree on a compromise candidate,.

BEIRUT (AFP) – Almost 20,000 runners hit the streets of Lebanon on Sunday for the fifth Beirut Marathon under tight security ahead of …

By Tom Perry, BEIRUT (Reuters Life!) - Lebanon's Caracalla Dance Theatre defied the odds to bring its fusion of modern and oriental dance to stages at home and abroad, building one of the Arab world's great artistic success stories. But having survived Lebanon's 1975-1990 civil war, Caracalla has been suffering its toughest spell in nearly four decades of dance, says company founder Abdel-Halim Caracalla.

The company has been forced to postpone its home performance plans for three years in a row because of political turmoil, war and assassinations, losing its biggest box office. It plans to take to the stage in December in Lebanon for the first time since 2002."These days are harder on us than the war days," said Caracalla, who led his dancers across the front lines of the civil war to perform throughout the divided country. "It was dangerous, but all the fighting factions accepted Caracalla."

Now, with his country paralyzed by political crisis, Caracalla says returning to the Lebanon stage is vital for the survival of a company whose ground-breaking choreography has impressed critics around the world."The biggest audience for Caracalla is in Lebanon. They are waiting. We are waiting," he said, sipping an espresso after overseeing rehearsals at the company's home theatre in Beirut.

"We are dying ... the company has never not performed for five years."