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Berri Offers Grace Period to Cabinet Formation, Seeks Holding Parliamentary Session

Speaker Nabih Berri said that the parliament will begin holding sessions to compensate the ongoing standstill in the formation of the cabinet.

Berri told As Safir newspaper published Monday that there is a “certain step” that he will reveal on Monday, saying that he will be giving a grace period, until mid-week, to the continued efforts to solve the government deadlock.

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Nasrallah: Return of Palestinians is a Right and Would be Achieved Soon

Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has stressed that the return of Palestinian refugees to their homeland is a right and believed that it would be achieved soon.

Addressing the protesters who marched on Israel's borders with Lebanon, Syria and Gaza on Sunday, Nasrallah lauded their “courage and belief” for confronting Israel and crying out loud to inform the world about their clear stance.

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Inmates of Roumieh Juvenile Ward End Hunger Strike

All of the 585 inmates at the juvenile ward of Roumieh prison have ended their hunger strike after receiving certain promises and learning that Speaker Nabih Berri had asked the parliament to discuss their demands, state-run National News Agency reported Sunday.

Meanwhile, prison authorities seized "210 narcotic pills, 15 grams of hashish and two mobile phone cases while searching items sent to inmates in Roumieh prison's bloc D," according to NNA.

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10 Dead, 112 Hurt by Israeli Gunfire against Protesters Marking Palestine Nakba Day on Lebanon Border

Israeli gunfire killed 10 people and wounded 112 others in the Lebanese border town of Maroun al-Ras during a Palestinian refugee protest on Sunday to mark "Nakba Day," the Lebanese army said in a statement.

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) called for "maximum restraint on all sides in order to prevent any further casualties" and for "immediate concrete security steps on the ground."

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Moussawi: We are Committed to Miqati in Forming Government

Loyalty to the Resistance bloc MP Nawwaf al-Moussawi stressed on Sunday that the new majority will continue its efforts to overcome the obstacles in the government formation until it is finally established.

He said: “We realize that some sides are counting on the prime minister-designate to resign in order for them to retry past governmental experiences.”

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1 Killed, 5 Hurt, Including Lebanese Soldier, in Firing from Syria into Lebanon as Pope Calls for End to Bloodshed

The deadly unrest in Syria spilled over into Lebanon where a woman was killed at a border crossing as protests against President Bashar al-Assad's regime entered a third month on Sunday.

Gunfire from Syria raked a crowd at al-Boqaia crossing near the town of Wadi Khaled, killing the Syrian woman and wounding five people including a Lebanese soldier, a Lebanese security official and an AFP correspondent said.

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Miqati’s Brother Visits Damascus: It is Distancing Itself from Meddling in Government Formation

Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati’s brother, Taha, visited Damascus on Wednesday where he met with Syrian officials, reported the pan-Arab daily al-Hayat on Sunday.

Sources told the daily: “The Syrian officials voiced their relief that an agreement was reached over who will assume the Interior Ministry and Damascus supports Miqati’s position of hanging on to his privileges in forming the government.”

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Al-Rahi ahead of Traveling to Rome: We Will Not Back Down from What Was Agreed upon at Bkirki Summit

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi stressed on Sunday that Christians and Muslims in Lebanon share the same fate, “they either survive together or die together.”

He said before his trip to Rome where he will participate in the Middle East Synod: “We will not back down from what was agreed upon at the Bkirki summit.”

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Suleiman: I Haven’t Demanded Anything and Others Should be Questioned over Delay in Cabinet Formation

President Michel Suleiman stressed that there are no more disagreements over the government formation now that the dispute over the Interior Ministry has been resolved, adding that other sides are responsible for creating obstacles.

He said: “Some sides believe that they are entitled to the Defense, Health, and Education portfolios that they will demand ten ministries, including nine portfolios.”

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Berri: Government Formation Has Become More Complicated

Speaker Nabih Berri stated on Saturday that the government formation process has become more complicated, saying that a government will not be formed any time soon.

He told al-Jadeed television: “We reached a solution, but then we regressed.”

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