Iraq's Vice President Ayad Allawi stressed that “Iraq can play a supportive and active role at the regional level, especially in Lebanon and Syria, after terminating the Islamic State militarily and changing the political environment which nurtures it,” the National News Agency reported on Saturday.

Allawi's words came after a visit to outgoing Interior Minister Nouhad Mashnouq at his office in the ministry where they held a lengthy meeting with discussions reportedly featuring high on the Lebanese and Iraqi situations as well as the regional developments.

Residents of the al-Sfira town in North Lebanon blocked the major road to the village protesting a decision to establish a landfill in the area, the National News Agency reported on Saturday.

The locals blocked the road with burning tires and protested the municipality's performance and a decision to establish a waste sorting plant in al-Sawmaa in the outskirts of the Dinnieh district.

Speaker Nabih Berri picked at the Lebanese banks and what he described as “cheap donations” allocated to buy weapons and assist the Lebanese army, al-Akhbar daily reported on Saturday.

“This is unacceptable. A single investor can alone pay an amount of ten million dollars. This is incomparable to the sacrifices and responsibilities that the army shoulders,” furious Berri told his visitors.

A Syrian man was found stabbed to death in the area of Bar Elias in Lebanon's eastern Bekaa valley, the state-run National News Agency reported on Saturday.

The victim, Abdullah Mohammed al-Nazzal, sustained knife wounds in his abdomen and back after a personal dispute erupted with unknown parties in the al-Tilyani camp, NNA added.

The meeting of Saudi Charge d'affairs Walid al-Bukhari with caretaker Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil on Friday signaled an improvement in relations between Lebanon and the Gulf States after an earlier deterioration in ties, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Saturday.

Discussions between the two men focused on the latest developments in Lebanon and the region, reports had said.

The first visit that the newly elected President Michel Aoun will make is to Saudi Arabia where he plans to push for the reactivation of the Saudi grant to arm the Lebanese army after it was halted early this year, As Safir daily reported on Saturday.

Preparations for the visit are ongoing, and the exact date will be set after the formation of the cabinet and after the cabinet wins a vote of confidence, added the daily.

Leader of the Democratic Gathering parliamentary bloc criticized Friday the parties trying to hamper the formation of the government under PM-designate Saad Hariri.

“Some parasites are hampering the formation process of the government. Burt they are being dealt with,” said Jumblat via Twitter.

A man killed his two young sons before shooting himself to death in the northern border town of Mashta Hassan in Akkar, the National News Agency reported on Friday.

The perpetrator Youssef Saado, shot dead his son Mohammed, 7, and Ali, 5, before pointing the hunting rifle at himself and shooting, NNA said.

The Saudi Ministry of Finance began paying billions of dollars owed to private firms and construction companies after oil revenues collapsed, including Saudi Oger, that have already carried out work for the state totaling about 100 billion Saudi riyals or about $ 26 billions.

The orders came after an announcement of the Council of Economic Affairs and Development, headed by powerful Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, said the kingdom will pay the outstanding amount before the end of December.

The Lebanese army and an Intelligence unit discovered hashish factories and massive amounts of manufactured hashish and Captagon pills in raids in the outskirts of the northeastern town of Hermel, the state-run National News Agency reported on Thursday.

The army carried out raids in the al-Shtah area in the outskirts of Hermel and found two hashish factories, seized one ton and a load of seven trucks of manufactured hashish in addition to one and a half million Captagon narcotics pills.