Britain's Business Secretary Vince Cable has described the proposed deportation of a Lebanese man with Down’s syndrome as “fundamentally inhumane.”
Wadih Chourey, 44, has lived in south-west London for the past 17 years after seeking refuge from abuse in his home country. But both his parents have since died and his brother Camil, 52, said he would be unable to care for himself in Lebanon.

Kataeb party MP Sami Gemayel decided to give up his salary from the parliament to the families of army martyrs, al-Joumhouria newspaper reported on Friday.
According to the daily Gemayel informed Parliament's Secretary-General Adnan Daher in an official memo that he “wants to give up indefinitely his salary starting of the first month of the legislature's new tenure to the fund of compensations for army martyrs.”

Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat held talks Thursday in Moscow with Aleksey Pushkov, head of the foreign affairs committee in the Russian Duma.
The meeting was attended by Jumblat's son Taimur, Health Minister Wael Abu Faour and PSP official Halim Abu Fakhreddine.

The cabinet did not comment on the issue of the parliament's term extension in the statement issued after its weekly session on Thursday, as it admitted that the case of the servicemen held hostage by jihadist groups is “difficult and complicated.”
“As in every session, the prime minister (Tammam Salam) called for the election of a new president and he mentioned the issue of extending the parliament's term without discussing it in detail,” said Information Minister Ramzi Jreij after the meeting at the Grand Serail, in response to a reporter's question.

The U.N.-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon confirmed Thursday that it has received Lebanon's share of its 2014 budget from the Lebanese government.
“The full sum of € 29,347,003.50, 49% of the Tribunal's budget, was transferred to the Tribunal's bank account this morning,” the STL said in a statement.

The army on Thursday arrested four people during raids in the town of al-Mhammara in the northern Akkar district, which has recently witnessed deadly clashes between troops and Islamist gunmen.
“Khaled Mohammed al-Shamali, Mahmoud Hussein Moussa, Ahmed Faraj al-Shamali and Faraj Mohammed al-Shamali were arrested in al-Mhammara for taking part in recent armed attacks against army troops,” the Army Command said in a communique.

Seventeen Syrians were charged on Thursday with belonging to an armed terrorist group, reported the National News Agency.
It said that State Commissioner to the Military Court Judge Saqr Saqr charged them with belonging to a terrorist organization in order to carry out attacks in Lebanon.

General Security chief Abbas Ibrahim stressed the importance of national unity in confronting the dangers facing Lebanon.
He said in an interview with the General Security magazine: “Lebanon will emerge victorious in its existential battle against organized terrorism.”

The General Security Intelligence Bureau raided two apartments inhabited by Syrians and detained several nationals, the state-run National News Agency reported on Thursday.
According to NNA, the first apartment lies in al-Saadiyat in the Shouf district, while the second in the area of Aramoun in Aley district.

An Israeli patrol crossed Lebanon's border and penetrated 50 meters into the outskirts of the southern town of Shebaa on Thursday, sparking a verbal dispute with peacekeepers from the Indian UNIFIL battalion who are positioned in the area.
“At 9:30 am, an Israeli enemy pedestrian patrol crossed the withdrawal line and penetrated 50 meters into the outskirts of the Jabal al-Shahel area in Shebaa inside Lebanese territory, before retreating to the occupied territories,” the Lebanese army said in a statement.