Hizbullah deputy chief Sheikh Naim Qassem on Wednesday called on the March 14 forces to “stop betting on regional developments to alter the balance of power in Lebanon,” stressing that Lebanon will remain “the Lebanon of resistance for tens of years.”
Qassem’s remarks come a day after the March 14 forces held a rally at the BIEL hall in Beirut to commemorate the seventh anniversary of ex-PM Rafik Hariri’s assassination.

President Michel Suleiman on Wednesday said that Lebanon “took notice” about U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s letter regarding the Special Tribunal for Lebanon cooperation protocol.
He briefed ministers of foreign affairs and justice, Adnan Mansour and Shakib Qortbawi, on the content of the letter he received from Ban through the foreign ministry.

The Lebanese army and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) on Wednesday carried out a joint live firing exercise combining artillery and machine gun fire near UNIFIL Headquarters in the southern town of Naqoura, UNIFIL said in a statement.
Named “Neptune Thunder”, the military exercise is periodically carried out by the army and UNIFIL forces.

Prime Minister Najib Miqati said on Wednesday that the cabinet crisis which erupted earlier in the month hasn’t been resolved yet.
“The cabinet’s (work) is ongoing and there is no problem in the government,” Miqati said after holding talks with Speaker Nabih Berri in Ain el-Tineh.

Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders praised on Wednesday the Lebanese government for funding the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, and hailed the Belgian-Lebanese bilateral relations.
“We are eager to continue our cooperation with the United Nations Security Council for the upcoming three years,” Reynders said after meeting with Prime Minister Najib Miqati at the Grand Serail.

State Minister Marwan Kheireddine stressed on Wednesday that the cabinet shouldn’t paralyze the country because of disputes among its members or over a signature, criticizing Labor Minister Charbel Nahhas’ firm stance on the transportation allowance decree.
“Prime Minister (Najib Miqati) was clear that (Nahhas) should sign the decree,” Kheireddine told reporters after holding a meeting with Miqati at the Grand Serail.

An increase in the public transportation tariffs created controversy in Lebanon on Wednesday, as the Public Works and Transport Ministry confirmed there was no official decision to boost the prices.
Some drivers of “service taxis” and vans decided to boost the transportation fees by LL500 or LL1,000, causing a tumult.

The cabinet remained deadlock on Wednesday as Prime Minister Najib Miqati and Labor Minister Charbel Nahhas seem to hold onto their stances over controversial issues.
“The issue is at a standstill as the premier’s stances are clear and he won’t back down, rumors on his resignation are untrue,” Miqati’s sources told An Nahar newspaper.

The major reaction to the March 14 forces’ call on Hizbullah to hand over its arms to the Lebanese army will likely come through the party’s leader, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, during a televised speech on Thursday.
During a gathering organized on Tuesday by the March 14 coalition in BIEL on ex-Premier Rafik Hariri’s Feb. 14, 2005 assassination anniversary, the main speakers slammed Hizbullah and its arms.

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi postponed his visit to the northern port city of Tripoli over last week’s bloody clashes between two rival neighborhoods.
The Tripoli bishopric said Tuesday that the postponement of the visit that was scheduled to take place on Saturday and Sunday came to allow “the city to lick its wounds after the latest confrontations that it witnessed.”
