Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun on Tuesday announced the FPM's rejection of any rotation of ministerial portfolios in the new cabinet, saying any such attempt would be considered an attack on the movement.

“We reject the notion of holding onto any ministerial portfolio, as rotation is acceptable when the cabinet changes, but we reject any manipulation targeting the basis of productivity during the short interval of time (that precedes the presidential vote and the formation of a new cabinet.) That would be a suspicious move aimed at targeting our work (at the ministries),” said Aoun in a written statement he recited after the Change and Reform bloc's weekly meeting.

Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced on Monday his total rejection to the people-army-resistance equation, stressing also that he will never abandon his allies.

“The people-army-resistance equation is completely rejected, full stop,” Hariri said in an interview on Future TV.

Syrian President Bashar Assad described the Special Tribunal for Lebanon as “politicized,” saying that it's only a tool to pressure Hizbullah.

"Nine years have passed since the beginning of this trial. Has justice been served? Every accusation was made for political reasons," he said on Sunday in an exclusive interview with Agence France Presse, days after the Special Tribunal for Lebanon began hearing evidence in the 2005 killing of Rafik Hariri.

The Hague - Naharnet Exclusive

Defense counsel for the accused in the assassination of former premier Rafik Hariri emerged confused and divided from the first two days of the trial at the headquarters of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon in The Hague.

The Hague - Naharnet Exclusive

The Prosecution of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon on Friday crowned its 2-day presentation about the outcome of investigations into the assassination of former premier Rafik Hariri by unveiling the route taken by the booby-trapped truck, the hierarchy of the assassination squad and a series of elements that might lead to major surprises as the trial moves forward.

The defense lawyers of the four suspects accused of carrying out the assassination of late Prime Minister Rafik Hariri stated on Friday that the crime is still “motiveless,” complaining also about the “noncooperation” of Lebanese authorities.

“Until this day, the General Prosecutor has not given any motives that could have triggered carrying out the assassination of Hariri,” suspect Mustafa Badreddine's lead counsel Antoine Korkmaz said at a press conference in The Hague.

A number of people were killed and wounded on Friday in shelling from the Syrian side of the border against the Bekaa border town of Arsal.

The National News Agency reported that seven people were killed and 15 wounded in the attack.

The Hague - Naharnet Exclusive

From the very first minutes of the opening session of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon trials in The Hague, the strategies of the court's competing organs became evident.

Paris - Naharnet Exclusive Report

Officials concerned with Lebanese affairs in the French administration assured on Wednesday that the Saudi Arabian donation to the military institution has taken its first steps towards implementation.

Washington on Tuesday hit out at Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif for laying a wreath of flowers on the tomb of slain Hizbullah military commander Imad Mughniyeh during his latest visit to Beirut.

“The United States condemns the decision taken by Zarif ... to place a wreath at the grave of Imad Mughniyeh, a former leader of Lebanese Hizbullah responsible for heinous acts of terrorism that killed hundreds of innocent people, including Americans,” U.S. National Security Council Spokesperson Caitlin Hayden said in a statement.