Qatari envoy expected in Beirut this week

A Qatari envoy is expected to arrive in Beirut this week, political sources told the Kuwaiti al-Anbaa newspaper, in remarks published Tuesday.

The five-nation group for Lebanon -- the United States, Saudi Arabia, France, Egypt and Qatar -- has been intensifying its efforts to help break the presidential impasse and keep Lebanon out of the Gaza war.

Hezbollah and Israel have been exchanging daily cross-border fire since the Israel-Hamas war began on October 7, raising fears of a broader conflagration.

French Special Presidential Envoy for Lebanon Jean-Yves Le Drian had left Beirut left week after meeting with key Lebanese players. His visit focused on Lebanon’s presidential vacuum and the situation in south Lebanon.

Lebanon has been without a president for more than a year, and its government has been running in a limited caretaker capacity.

In a letter to caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, French President Emmanuel Macron warned that the presidential vacancy might weigh on the country's ability to prevent a security deterioration related to the war in Gaza.

Macron said that the involvement of Lebanon in the Hamas-Israel war would have "serious repercussions for the country."