Marada Movement leader MP Suleiman Franjieh stated on Friday that he had promised Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi that he will not provide the necessary quorum at the parliament to prevent his political foe's election, adding also that he disagrees with the head of the Maronite Church over the fear of vacuum in the presidency.

"The constitution discussed the needed quorum in parliamentary sessions (dedicated to elect a new president) but it did not say anything about requiring MPs to be present,” Franjieh said in an interview on al-Manar television.

Seven Syrians were arrested on Friday in the border town of Arsal for possessing “suspicious” identification documents.

"The army arrested seven Syrians in Arsal for illegally entering Lebanon," the military institution said in a communique.

The cabinet on Friday appointed five new governors and accepted the resignation of Governor of Beirut and the North Nassif Qaloush, which he had submitted following reports about him being involved in a sexual harassment case.

The ministerial session, which was held at Baabda Palace and chaired by President Michel Suleiman, appointed Fouad Fleifel as governor of Mount Lebanon, Ziad Shbib as governor of Beirut, Imad Labaki of the northern Akkar region, Ramzi Nohra of the North, and Bashir Khodr as governor of Baalbek-Hermel in the Bekaa.

Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi will travel to Jerusalem next month to greet Pope Francis, becoming the first head of the Maronite church to visit the holy land since Israel's creation in 1948, he said Friday.

"The pope is going to the Holy Land and Jerusalem. He is going to the diocese of the patriarch, so it's normal that the patriarch should welcome him," Rahi said by telephone from France.

Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Awad Assiri arrived in Lebanon with his family on Friday afternoon to resume his diplomatic duties, but denied that his return is linked to the upcoming presidential vote.

"The Kingdom did not and will not meddle in Lebanese affairs,” Assiri told the state-run National News Agency in his first statement after returning to the country.

Prime Minister Tammam Salam stated on Friday that in light of the current indicators it seems that a new president will not be elected on time, voicing also calls to hold the elections away from “external interferences.”

"We are facing a difficult stage and a challenge in electing a new head of state," he said in a meeting with Lebanese diplomats.

U.S. Ambassador David Hale said Friday that the presidential election is a Lebanese matter and that Washington's role lies in helping to protect the polls.

“Lebanon’s presidential election, and its parliamentary elections this fall, are entirely Lebanese processes,” Hale said after holding talks with Speaker Nabih Berri in Ain el-Tineh.

The Free Sunnis of Baalbek Brigade said on Friday that it has taken three Hizbullah members as hostage on the outskirts of the eastern city of Baalbek.

The terrorist group claimed on its twitter account that the three hostages are from Hizbullah's elite force.

President Michel Suleiman on Friday appealed for the election of a “made in Lebanon” head of state, rejected foreign interference in the presidential elections and called the boycott of the polls “undemocratic.”

“The presidential and parliamentary elections should be held on time and vacuum avoided,” Suleiman told Lebanese diplomats at Baabda Palace.

The March 8 alliance is divided on the candidacy of Free Patriotic Movement chief Michel Aoun for the presidency, the Kuwaiti al-Anba daily reported on Friday.

The newspaper quoted sources as saying that some March 8 members, including Hizbullah, are hoping Aoun would decide to give up his bid for the presidency.