The French weapons that were supposed to be given to the Lebanese army as part of a Saudi grant will be delivered to Saudi Arabia after the donation was halted last month, the pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat quoted sources on Saturday.

French diplomatic sources following up closely on the Lebanese file and the Saudi decision that halted a $4 billion grant to the Lebanese army and security forces told the daily that they “understand” Riyadh's position in light of the “fabrications of Hizbullah” and believe that the “Lebanese government’s official decision is confiscated by the party.”

Prime Minister Tammam Salam has tasked Agriculture Minister Mohammed al-Mashnouq instead of Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil to represent him at the Extraordinary Islamic Summit on Palestine end of this week, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Saturday.

“The invitation has been addressed to Salam and he is free to assign any of the ministers,” sources at the Grand Serail told the daily.

Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq stressed that his stance regarding Hizbullah at the Arab Interior Ministers Conference was coordinated with Prime Minister Tammam Salam and that it was different from the controversial stance of Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil, al-Mustaqbal daily reported on Thursday.

“There is absolutely no resemblance between the two stances. I have not stood in the face of the Arab consensus and Lebanon's position was not the only one, but it followed the reservations expressed by Iraq and Algeria,” Mashnouq told the daily.

Israel has begun delivering its new mid-range missile defense system to air bases to defend itself against possible attacks from Hizbullah.

The Defense Ministry said Tuesday the David's Sling system "will allow Israel to more effectively defend against the wide range of current and future threats to its civilians." The delivery process will take a few weeks.

Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah reassured the Lebanese on Tuesday that the country is not “on the brink of civil war” despite the political and sectarian tensions, as he vowed to continue his criticism of the Saudi policies in Lebanon and the region.

“Since the announcement of the suspension of the Saudi grants, we have entered a new phase of political conflict and Saudi Arabia aggravated it through media campaigns,” said Nasrallah in a televised speech addressing the latest developments.

Hizbullah was able to bring back the bodies of four of its fighters including that of a senior military commander who was killed in battles in the northern Syrian province of Aleppo last week, reports said on Monday.

Hizbullah recovered the bodies of four of its fighters including that of Ali Fayyad in a special operation carried out in collaboration with the Syrian army in the town of Tal-Hmam, LBCI said.

The agenda of the next cabinet session slated for Thursday has been distributed on Lebanon's ministers and includes 169 items for discussion, although Prime Minister Tammam Salam threatens to halt it over a delay in solutions for the garbage file, An Nahar daily reported on Monday.

Ministerial sources said that Salam has deplored the slow progress in the months long trash management file and that he is ready to “turn tables” if no progress is made before the session is held.

Member of the parliamentary committee tasked with resolving the trash management crisis Minister Hussein Hajj Hassan said on Sunday that Hizbullah has no problem with creating a landfill in the coastal area of Costa Brava, al-Mustaqbal daily reported on Sunday.

“When suggestions emerged that the Costa Brava landfill should be created, committee member Hassan assured that Hizbullah has no problem with that, nor with any other landfill,” an unnamed source told the daily.

Democratic Gathering bloc MP Walid Jumblat urged Hizbullah leader Sayed Hassan Nasrallah to exert the efforts needed to stop Lebanon from sliding into the regional chaos, the Kuwaiti al-Anbaa daily reported on Sunday.

Sources following up closely on the latest developments between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia said that Progressive Socialist Party leader Jumblat held a telephone conversation with Nasrallah and “urged him to exert efforts in order to prevent Lebanon from sliding into the chaos prevailing in the region.”

Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Awadh Asiri stressed on Friday that he has no knowledge of measures taken by his country against Lebanese expats working in the Kingdom and assured that the relations between the two countries must not be scarified in favor of another state's will.

“Until this moment I have no knowledge about measures taken against Lebanese expatriates. Reports that around 90 were deported because they were not given residency permits stemmed from Lebanon,” Asiri said in a televised interview on OTV.