U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon has stressed that the Lebanese government should “abide by its commitments” and continue to pay its share of the international tribunal’s funds.

In remarks to Arab satellite TV network al-Arabiya, Ban said Lebanon should be loyal to its commitments because the court was established by the Security Council upon the demand of the Lebanese people and government.

An agreement was reportedly made between the March 8 forces backed by Syria and Democratic Gathering leader MP Walid Jumblat for his bloc to give seven votes for the opposition’s nominee for the premier’s post, Omar Karami, amid efforts to guarantee a eighth MP.

An Nahar daily quoted March 14 forces as saying Saturday that Democratic Gathering MPs who are not members of Jumblat’s Progressive Socialist Party have informed him that they would nominate caretaker Premier Saad Hariri. They are: Mohammed al-Hajjar, Fouad al-Saad, Henri Helou, Marwan Hamadeh and Antoine Saad.

The Saudi embassy has reportedly sent text messages to its citizens, urging them to take precautionary measures over the deteriorating political situation in Lebanon.

An embassy source told pan-Arab daily al-Hayat in remarks published Saturday that “given the situation …. the embassy asked its citizens to remain in contact with it to know what measures to take.”

French President Nicolas Sarkozy is reportedly adamant to continue contacts with friendly Arab countries to guarantee Lebanon’s stability following the collapse of the government and signs that the March 8 forces would have the upper hand in forming the new cabinet.

Pan-Arab daily al-Hayat quoted French sources as saying that “Sarkozy is determined to continue efforts along with Arab countries friendly to Paris (to guarantee) the stability of Lebanon.”

French Ambassador to Lebanon Denis Pietton on Friday saluted "the unwavering commitment … that was expressed by the caretaker prime minister in the solemn and dignified speech that he delivered" Thursday.

"I visited caretaker Prime Minister (Saad Hariri) to discuss the serious political crisis that Lebanon is going through today," Pietton said after talks with Hariri at the Center House in downtown Beirut.

A grenade exploded in the Tripoli neighborhood of Bab al-Tebbaneh on Friday without causing any casualties or damage, a security official said.

"The grenade went off on Friday evening just outside a Sunni Muslim cemetery in the neighborhood of Bab al-Tebbaneh at the border with the Jabal Mohsen district," the official told Agence France Presse.

The U.N.-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon said Friday its Appeals Chamber will sit on February 7 to mull over charges of terrorism and murder drafted for the 2005 killing of ex-premier Rafik Hariri.

A "public hearing will take place on February 7, 2011" to discuss STL Pre-Trial Judge Daniel Fransen's questions to the Appeals Chamber about certain criminal definitions in the indictment, said a scheduling order of the court.

Lebanon's rumor mill is at full throttle, sparking panic and spreading a sense of foreboding, as a seemingly insoluble political deadlock that has left the country without government deepens.

A gathering of Hizbullah supporters in many western Beirut neighborhoods on Tuesday sparked rumors of a dry run in preparation for a takeover of the capital.

Lebanese Forces MP Elie Marouni questioned on Friday Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat’s positions that at times lean towards the parliamentary majority and at others lean towards the opposition.

He told the Central News Agency that he has no idea what had changed Jumblat’s mind given his latest position that he would support the opposition during Monday’s parliamentary consultations to appoint a new prime minister.

Phalange Party leader Amin Gemayel stressed on Friday the importance that parliamentary consultations to appoint a new prime minister should take place during a calm atmosphere away from the pressures that are being exerted on the institutions.

He said in a statement after meeting President Michel Suleiman: "The pressures on the institutions have reached the point of terrorization."