A Lebanese man was arrested on Wednesday at Beirut’s Rafik Hariri International Airport for trying to smuggle drugs to Lebanon, the state-run National News Agency reported. NNA said 22-year-old M.A. was apprehended for carrying with him 3.2 kilograms of cocaine. The drugs were stashed in his travel luggage, the agency said. The suspect had […]

  Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq presented on Wednesday some of the changes that have been introduced to Roumieh Prison, the country’s largest and most overcrowded facility. He said during a press conference: “The renovated block B will be ready for the transfer of inmates in around 20 days.” Some 500 prisoners have already been transferred […]

  BEIRUT: The International Support Group for Lebanon expressed Tuesday their commitment to the stability of Lebanon in the face of the ongoing crisis in Syria, reiterating the need for the country to elect a president. “The Group expressed concern over the vacuum in the presidency of the Republic as it continues to seriously undermine […]

  The spokesperson of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon has said there was no direct contact with the court on efforts to refer to it the file of former Minister Michel Samaha, adding the issue required an agreement between the Lebanese government and the United Nations. “I cannot comment on the statements made by politicians […]

  BEIRUT: Three irrigation ponds in the Jbeil village of Aqoura burst Wednesday, causing heavy flooding in the area. A security source told The Daily Star the floods swamped vast areas, causing damage to crops and property and rendering many roads inaccessible. The man-made reservoirs – which were built by local residents Mansour Wehbeh, Sabah […]

  The seat of the Maronite church in Bkirki and the Kataeb Party reportedly expressed reservations on the Change and Reform bloc’s initiative to resolve the presidential deadlock. Sources said in comments published in al-Liwaa newspaper Tuesday that Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi and the Kataeb Party were mainly skeptic over the vague mechanism that the […]

  BEIRUT: Military Prosecutor Judge Saqr Saqr filed an appeal Monday against what was viewed as a lenient jail sentence handed down to former Minister Michel Samaha last week, demanding a tougher penalty, judicial sources told The Daily Star. The appeal, submitted to the Military Court of Cassation, challenges the Military Tribunal’s four-and-a-half-year jail sentence […]

  Mexican Foreign Minister Jose Antonio Meade, who is on an official visit to Beirut, said he is looking forward for a wider cooperation with Lebanon to help it confront the burden of Syrian refugees. “Part of our dialogue with Lebanon should take into consideration Lebanon’s burden in assisting the refugees,” Meade told An Nahar […]

  BEIRUT: A Free Patriotic Movement delegation began a number of scheduled talks with Lebanese officials with a visit to Maronite Patriarch Beshara Rai Monday, to promote MP Michel Aoun’s initiative to end the presidential vacuum. The delegation, including MPs Ibrahim Kanaan, Naamatallah Abi Nasser, Alain Aoun, and Salim Salhab discussed Aoun’s proposals with Rai. […]

  Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil kicked off a tour on Sunday in South Lebanon, where he called on the Lebanese military to assume its responsibility in the northeastern border town of Arsal. “The mistakes that were done in Arsal shouldn’t reoccur and the cabinet and the army should assume their responsibilities and not become spectators,” […]