by Daily Star.com.lb –– “Prime Minister Hariri is waiting for a final answer from the Lebanese Forces to his latest Cabinet offer before he meets with President Aoun either Monday or Tuesday to present him with the first Cabinet lineup that includes the distribution of portfolios among the main blocs, along with the names of ministers,” a source at Baabda Palace told The Daily Star. “The Cabinet formation process is on the right track. All signs indicate that the formation of a national unity government will be announced this week after major hurdles have been eliminated,” the source said. He ruled out the possibility of last-minute snags similar to those over the LF demand for the Justice Ministry that had thwarted the announcement of a Cabinet lineup nearly two weeks ago. The LF demand was rejected by Aoun, who insisted on retaining the Justice Ministry for one of his loyalists as part of his share after ceding the position of the deputy prime minister to the LF.

According to the source, Hariri’s Cabinet offer presented to the LF still stood unchanged despite the LF’s persistent demand for a weighty ministerial post as a substitute for the Justice Ministry. During one of his meetings with caretaker Information Minister Melhem Riachi last week, Hariri was reported to have offered the Lebanese Forces four posts: The deputy prime minister’s position and the Social Affairs, Culture and Labor ministries. Riachi, one of three LF ministers in the outgoing Cabinet, told The Daily Star Sunday that the LF would convey its answer to Hariri’s offer Monday.The LF’s parliamentary Strong Republic bloc will hold an extraordinary meeting in Maarab at noon Monday to be chaired by LF leader Samir Geagea to discuss “latest developments in the Cabinet formation and take the appropriate stances on it,” a statement from Geagea’s media office said Sunday night. LF’s deputy leader MP George Adwan said the party’s executive committee, headed by Geagea, would hold a “crucial meeting” either late Sunday night or Monday morning to decide on whether or not to participate in the new government. Adwan, in an interview with MTV, raised the possibility of the LF staying out of the new government. “There is a high possibility that the Lebanese Forces will not participate in the government,” he said. Assuring that a government would be formed in the next few days, Adwan said a “Plan B” would need to be devised if the LF did not participate in the government. Commenting on Adwan’s hint at the possibility of the LF staying out of the government, a source familiar with the Cabinet formation process told The Daily Star: “Adwan’s remarks are meant to enhance the Lebanese Forces’ negotiating position. No one wants to stay out of the government.” While Hariri insists on the LF participation in the new government, Adwan said caretaker Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil, the head of the Free Patriotic Movement, was seeking either to “prevent the Lebanese Forces from being represented in the government with its real weight, or prevent its participation.” Emboldened by the results of the May parliamentary elections in which it nearly doubled the number of its MPs from eight to 15, the LF has been demanding a significant Cabinet share. The LF and the FPM have been embroiled in a fierce struggle for five months over Christian representation in the government.

POSTED BY CAROLINE BROOKS-MICHIGAN STATE — futurity.org — Building upon previous findings that showed how helping colleagues slows one’s success, management professor Russell Johnson looked more closely at the different kinds of help in which people engage at work—and how that help was received. “Right now, there’s a lot of stress on productivity in the workplace, and to be […]

By Reuters Microsoft overtook Amazon as second most valuable U.S. company on Friday after investors punished Jeff Bezos’ e-commerce behemoth for a disappointing quarterly earnings report, wiping $65 billion off the online retailer’s market capitalization. Apple still tops the list at over $1 trillion after crossing that threshold in September. Microsoft’s market capitalization was Wall […]

Washington (CNN) By Elise Labott and Nicole Gaouette–The son of murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi has left Saudi Arabia and arrived in the United States, a source close to the family told CNN. Salah bin Jamal Khashoggi, a dual US-Saudi citizen, had previously been unable to leave Saudi Arabia after his passport was restricted by the kingdom some months ago. […]

RIYADH (Reuters) – Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Wednesday joked about Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri’s detention in the kingdom last year, saying he was free to leave after attending an international investment conference in Riyadh. “Prime Minister Saad is staying in the kingdom for two days so I hope you don’t spread […]

BEIRUT, (Xinhua) — Lebanese President Michel Aoun on Tuesday slammed Israel for trying to “stir up” tension in southern Lebanon by making “false” accusations that Hezbollah holds secret missiles near Lebanon’s Rafic Hariri International Airport. “We have proved that Israeli’s accusations are false. These accusations aim at stirring up tension in southern Lebanon,” the Presidency’s […]

This article does not necessarily represent khazen.org opinion  by Ryan Grenoble — huffingtonpost.com — Officials in Saudi Arabia summoned Salah Khashoggi, the eldest son of the late journalist Jamal Khashoggi, to a palace in Riyadh on Tuesday, where he posed for photos with King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. While the Saudis claim […]

by Gulfnews AFP — Tripoli, Lebanon – Close to the seafront in Lebanon’s Tripoli, giant curves of concrete stand testimony to dreams before the civil war, etchings of an exhibition park never finished but already cracking. This month, a rare exhibition is being held at the site designed by legendary Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer in […]

By Euronews  — The UK Lebanon Tech Hub (UKLTH) is an international programme supporting the growth of Lebanon’s knowledge economy. In recent years, the initiative has helped more than 80 Lebanese startups, raising more than US$ 60 million. It allows surgeons like Nadine Hachach-Haram to help operate in a patient in Beirut, or anywhere else in the […]

By Summer Said, Margherita Stancati and Justin Scheck — wsj —– Saudi Arabia’s elderly king sent a strong signal this weekend that his handpicked heir, 33-year-old Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, remains in good standing despite the gruesome killing of a prominent government critic that many at home and abroad suspect he set in motion. Yet the events of the past few weeks have sharpened differences between the prince and royal family members who were beginning to question his judgment and temperament. And there is no sign that the global backlash over the killing will abate soon, testing Saudi Arabia’s modernization of its economy and its relationship with its most important ally, the U.S. On Saturday, King Salman granted Prince Mohammed new powers over the country’s intelligence bodies, to pair with his sweeping authority over Saudi Arabia’s economy and defense. That same day, the Saudi attorney general effectively exonerated the crown prince, blaming the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi on “a brawl and physical altercation” in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Speaking after a political rally in Nevada on Saturday, Mr. Trump told reporters he wasn’t satisfied with the initial results of the Saudi investigation. “I’m not satisfied until we find the answer,” Mr. Trump said, adding that he would consider sanctions, but not on military sales. He added that “it’s possible” the crown prince didn’t know about the killing, and that he was still looking to speak with him. People in Prince Mohammed’s camp say his power internally remains largely unchecked, and there is no indication the Saudi monarch is preparing to remove his son. The prospect of a family member pushing him aside is negligible, advisers say, largely because Prince Mohammed has solidified his power base by removing potential rivals.

In the kingdom itself, a number of Saudi royals have tried to reach out to King Salman to discuss the crisis, but have been blocked by associates of the crown prince, said two members of the royal family. They have been secretly meeting in small groups to discuss the issue, they said. Among other things, some of these people are challenging the official version of what happened to Mr. Khashoggi. Prince Khalid al Faisal, an envoy of King Salman who was dispatched to Ankara earlier this month, had access to a short audio recording that offers evidence that Mr. Khashoggi was drugged, killed and dismembered minutes after walking into the consulate, these two members say. “The audio does not have this nonsense about a fight that broke after an argument,” said one royal member. “This is not what Khalid told the king and his friends. This is absolutely rubbish.” Spokespeople for the Saudi government didn’t respond to requests for comment Saturday. Several people close to the royal court say Prince Mohammed had long wanted Mr. Khashoggi to return to the kingdom, a task he entrusted to some of his closest aides. These people say they believe the young prince ordered the operation targeting Mr. Khashoggi, but that it was unlikely he specifically ordered the journalist killed. The Saudi government has so far detained 18 people in connection to the death pending the final results of a continuing investigation. Two senior officials, both close aides of Prince Mohammed, have lost their jobs.