One or two Arsal hostages to be freed soon: Hujeiri

BEIRUT: At least one or two of the 25 Lebanese servicemen held hostage by Islamist militants on the Syrian border will be released soon, Arsal Mayor Ali Hujeiri said in remarks published Tuesday.

“Within the coming few hours, you will hear good news. I’m not saying a swap deal is going to take place, but at least one or two of the hostages will be freed in a day or so,” Hujeiri told local daily Al-Joumhouria.

His remarks came following a visit to the captors by Arsal Deputy Mayor Ahmad Fliti.

Fliti was appointed by Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt to lead negotiations with the captors to end the 5-month-old hostage ordeal.

ISIS and Nusra Front briefly overran the northeastern border town of Arsal in early August, taking more than 30 Lebanese soldiers and policemen captive. They have since released eight and killed four.

Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk and Justice Minister Ashraf Rifi welcomed Fliti's appointment.

A spokesperson for the hostages' families said after meeting with Machnouk Monday that the minister reiterated his support for any effort that would release the captives, especially the efforts of Ahmad Fliti.

The spokesperson quoted Machnouk as saying that the Cabinet supported a deal that involved trading Islamist inmates in Roumieh Prison for the captives.

Later in the day, the families met with Rifi, who voiced strong support for Fliti. “I have cooperated with him on many different issues before,” Rifi said in reference to Fliti. “We trust him, his efforts and his integrity.”

Hezbollah extends hand to Future, committed to Aoun

Hezbollah extends hand to Future, committed to Aoun

Hezbollah official Hussein Khalil reaffirmed the group’s commitment for MP Michel Aoun’s presidential candidacy and as...

LeBron James Jr. Is Pretty Awesome at Basketball, Too

The pre-chorus to the 1997 alt-rock hit "One Headlight" is catchy, sure, but Jakob Dylan will never be Bob Dylan. Kiefer Sutherland was fantastic in The Lost Boys and 24, but neither of those hold a candle to his father Donald's work in The Dirty Dozen or Ordinary People. And sure, Hank Williams Jr. is probably still collecting a boatload of royalties on "Family Tradition," but Hank Sr. more or less invented the whole genre. With rare exception, it's quietly understood that footstep-following sons will always have trouble living up to the achievements of their famous fathers.

But then you have one of those days where happen upon a highlight reel of LeBron James Jr. at an AAU b-ball tournament. LBJ-J is in 4th grade. He's already caught the attention of college coaches. Can you imagine where he'll be in five years? Fifteen? Watch it below:

[H/T: Uproxx]

Future, Hezbollah to break the ice

BEIRUT: Officials from the Future Movement and Hezbollah will sit face to face Tuesday, marking the start of a dialogue aimed at easing sectarian tensions in Lebanon and paving the way for the election of a president.

Speaking to The Daily Star Monday, a Hezbollah official said that the party would be represented in the talks by Hussein Khalil, the political aide to party leader Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah, along with Industry Minister Hussein Hajj Hasan and MP Hasan Fadlallah.

Nader Hariri, chief of former Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s staff, plus Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk and lawmaker Samir Jisr will attend on behalf of the Future Movement.

The main goals of the dialogue between the two bitter rivals are to reduce Sunni-Shiite tensions in the country, pave the way for ending a seven-month vacuum in the presidency, boost efforts to combat the rising threat of terrorism, facilitate an agreement on a new electoral law and energize stagnant state institutions.

Future Movement sources said the party would focus on the need to elect a consensus president, a task which has proven a Gordian knot for Lebanese politicians.

Hezbollah backs Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun for the presidency, a candidate strongly opposed by the Future Movement and the rest of the March 14 parties, who support Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea’s candidacy.

Speaker Nabih Berri, who has been preparing for the talks over the past months, will host the first dialogue session at his residence in the Beirut neighborhood of Ain al-Tineh at 6 p.m.

Also attending the talks will be Finance Minister Ali Hasan Khalil, Berri’s political aide.

Quoting sources familiar with the preparations for dialogue, the Central News Agency said Berri would deliver a speech at the outset of the session, in which he would praise Hezbollah and the Future Movement for launching the talks and highlight the positive impact the move would have on national unity and coexistence.

Visiting regional and international officials have also hailed the upcoming deliberations.

“I would like to praise and highly appreciate the political and national initiative launched by Speaker Berri in this phase, which paved the way for the brotherly and constructive dialogue between influential political parties on the Lebanese arena,” Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani said during a joint news conference after holding talks with Berri.“We consider that this national initiative and this dialogue will help in further uniting the views of various influential political parties in the Lebanese arena, which will solve several remaining political problems,” Larijani added.

Larijani said that every regional power that believed in Lebanon should focus on addressing Israel and the rampant terrorism in the region, which, according to Larijani, were “two sides of the same coin.”

For his part, Berri said he agreed with Iran’s speaker on how airstrikes in Iraq and Syria by the international coalition against ISIS would fail to resolve the ongoing security challenges posed by the radical group.

In separate remarks at a news conference at Phoenicia Hotel, Larijani said his country was trying to help Lebanon secure the release of its 25 captive servicemen, but said their jihadi captors were still receiving foreign support.

“Efforts we are making regarding the captured servicemen always focus on the captors in a bid to resolve the case,” Larijani said. “We are doing what we should do but the primary responsibility is that of states supporting these [jihadi] groups.”

The Iranian official also ruled out the possibility that ISIS could take over Lebanese territory.

Answering a question about Iran’s opinion of French efforts aimed at ending the Lebanese presidential vacuum, Larijani said Iran supported all initiatives with that goal.

Reaching a solution for the seven-month-long presidential deadlock was largely the responsibility of Lebanon’s Christians, he said, adding that it was not Iran’s right to get involved in the matter.

Larijani also held talks with Prime Minister Tammam Salam and met with a delegation of Palestinian factions.

Saudi Ambassador Ali Awad Asiri congratulated all Lebanese and Christians in particular ahead of the Christmas and New Year’s holidays, expressing his hope that 2015 would be a time for dialogue and national unity.

“We all hope that the upcoming phase will witness positive steps for Lebanon as a result of good intentions and the political activity carried out by many parties, so that we welcome a new year that will be a starting point for constructive dialogue, combined efforts and the strengthening of national unity,” Asiri said in a statement.

In other developments Monday, President of the Italian Senate Pietro Grasso expressed hopes after meeting Salam that the Future-Hezbollah talks could solve domestic problems. Grasso said that he was able to voice Italy’s solidarity with Lebanon over the ongoing hostage crisis, and called for the election of a president as soon as possible.

Future, Hezbollah to break the ice

BEIRUT: Officials from the Future Movement and Hezbollah will sit face to face Tuesday, marking the start of a dialogue aimed at easing sectarian tensions in Lebanon and paving the way for the election of a president.

Speaking to The Daily Star Monday, a Hezbollah official said that the party would be represented in the talks by Hussein Khalil, the political aide to party leader Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah, along with Industry Minister Hussein Hajj Hasan and MP Hasan Fadlallah.

Nader Hariri, chief of former Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s staff, plus Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk and lawmaker Samir Jisr will attend on behalf of the Future Movement.

The main goals of the dialogue between the two bitter rivals are to reduce Sunni-Shiite tensions in the country, pave the way for ending a seven-month vacuum in the presidency, boost efforts to combat the rising threat of terrorism, facilitate an agreement on a new electoral law and energize stagnant state institutions.

Future Movement sources said the party would focus on the need to elect a consensus president, a task which has proven a Gordian knot for Lebanese politicians.

Hezbollah backs Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun for the presidency, a candidate strongly opposed by the Future Movement and the rest of the March 14 parties, who support Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea’s candidacy.

Speaker Nabih Berri, who has been preparing for the talks over the past months, will host the first dialogue session at his residence in the Beirut neighborhood of Ain al-Tineh at 6 p.m.

Also attending the talks will be Finance Minister Ali Hasan Khalil, Berri’s political aide.

Quoting sources familiar with the preparations for dialogue, the Central News Agency said Berri would deliver a speech at the outset of the session, in which he would praise Hezbollah and the Future Movement for launching the talks and highlight the positive impact the move would have on national unity and coexistence.

Visiting regional and international officials have also hailed the upcoming deliberations.

“I would like to praise and highly appreciate the political and national initiative launched by Speaker Berri in this phase, which paved the way for the brotherly and constructive dialogue between influential political parties on the Lebanese arena,” Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani said during a joint news conference after holding talks with Berri.“We consider that this national initiative and this dialogue will help in further uniting the views of various influential political parties in the Lebanese arena, which will solve several remaining political problems,” Larijani added.

Larijani said that every regional power that believed in Lebanon should focus on addressing Israel and the rampant terrorism in the region, which, according to Larijani, were “two sides of the same coin.”

For his part, Berri said he agreed with Iran’s speaker on how airstrikes in Iraq and Syria by the international coalition against ISIS would fail to resolve the ongoing security challenges posed by the radical group.

In separate remarks at a news conference at Phoenicia Hotel, Larijani said his country was trying to help Lebanon secure the release of its 25 captive servicemen, but said their jihadi captors were still receiving foreign support.

“Efforts we are making regarding the captured servicemen always focus on the captors in a bid to resolve the case,” Larijani said. “We are doing what we should do but the primary responsibility is that of states supporting these [jihadi] groups.”

The Iranian official also ruled out the possibility that ISIS could take over Lebanese territory.

Answering a question about Iran’s opinion of French efforts aimed at ending the Lebanese presidential vacuum, Larijani said Iran supported all initiatives with that goal.

Reaching a solution for the seven-month-long presidential deadlock was largely the responsibility of Lebanon’s Christians, he said, adding that it was not Iran’s right to get involved in the matter.

Larijani also held talks with Prime Minister Tammam Salam and met with a delegation of Palestinian factions.

Saudi Ambassador Ali Awad Asiri congratulated all Lebanese and Christians in particular ahead of the Christmas and New Year’s holidays, expressing his hope that 2015 would be a time for dialogue and national unity.

“We all hope that the upcoming phase will witness positive steps for Lebanon as a result of good intentions and the political activity carried out by many parties, so that we welcome a new year that will be a starting point for constructive dialogue, combined efforts and the strengthening of national unity,” Asiri said in a statement.

In other developments Monday, President of the Italian Senate Pietro Grasso expressed hopes after meeting Salam that the Future-Hezbollah talks could solve domestic problems. Grasso said that he was able to voice Italy’s solidarity with Lebanon over the ongoing hostage crisis, and called for the election of a president as soon as possible.

Bou Saab: Modern Lebanese history curriculum imminent

BEIRUT: The government is set to receive a long-awaited draft of a unified history curriculum covering Lebanon’s modern history, Education Minister Elias Bou Saab told The Daily Star in an interview Monday. “We’re talking about the history curriculum that will be the base for history [textbooks],” Bou Saab said. “It will [cover] until the [2005] assassination of late Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.”

“I am hoping in January 2015 to send it to the government to be an item to be discussed on the agenda.”

Currently, the history curriculum ends with Lebanon’s independence in 1943. This is largely because teaching the history of the following period is contentious, due to deep divisions between political parties over the years before, during and after the 1975-90 Lebanese Civil War.

Bou Saab said he received feedback Monday from Prime Minister Tammam Salam’s office on the curriculum proposal.

“They are supposed to be the last comments that I will [review] and implement with the curriculum that was proposed.”

He noted that MPs, political parties, and other government representatives met several times to produce the draft.

Asked whether he believed the draft curriculum would be quickly approved by the government, he said he was unsure.

“Supposedly we took the comments of everybody. If politically, anybody feels they want to object for the sake of objecting, this could happen. I hope that it will not be the case.”

Bou Saab also said he believed a new teacher salary scale could only be passed after Lebanon resolved its presidential crisis.

“I believe there will be a [new] salary scale. I don’t know which salary scale we will end up with. My gut feeling [is that] we will have [one] after we have a president elected in the country and we have a new government in place.”

Last year, after threatening not to hold Grades 9 and 12 official exams altogether, teachers temporarily refused to mark the tests in a bid to pressure Parliament to pass the new salary scale.

Bou Saab responded by issuing passing certificates to the grade 9 and grade 12 students who took the exam, arguing there were no signs that the salary raise would be endorsed anytime soon.

In another tactic, teachers also held several strikes.

Bou Saab promised students that they would not have to go through similar chaos this year.

“We had an agreement [with teachers] after what happened last year that there will not be any unnecessary strikes.”

In October, Parliament referred the salary scale back to the joint committees after Defense Minister Samir Moqbel voiced his irritation at what he called a disproportionate raise for security personnel. Hence, the bill continues to be debated.

Bou Saab said he was planning a two-day educational conference in the spring to assess curricula, the academic situation in public and private schools, official exams and the teaching of special needs students.

“We will have guest speakers hopefully from outside the country, ministers of education, and we will have a road map after that ... We will put a plan in place for us to move forward.”

During the last Cabinet session, he presented the government with a plan called Reaching Every Child with Education in Lebanon (RACE), which would allow Lebanon to accommodate as many of the country’s 400,000 school-aged Syrian refugees as possible.

However, he acknowledged this was a “big challenge.” He noted that in comparison, there were 275,000 Lebanese students in government schools. The government only had funding to accommodate about 102,000 Syrians, he added.

The minister stressed that the plan, funded by the international community, ensured that Syrian students would not remain forever in the country.

He also defended his decision to back the granting of permits to establish four new faculties of pharmacy at the American University of Science and Technology, Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, Jinan University and University of Balamand.

The government has failed to settle the issue, due to opposition from Kataeb Party ministers and others loyal to MP Walid Jumblatt.

The opposition cited a poor job market and a lack of a proper market study – a stance backed by the Order of Pharmacists.

Bou Saab dismissed such arguments as “old-school thinking.”

“You can never stop people from graduating in any kind of education, you know we have an open market.”

“We are graduating students who may go and work outside Lebanon if there is no opportunity in Lebanon.”

He added said that according to the law, any university that satisfied specific requirements should be granted a permit to establish a faculty.

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Lebanon waits on Turkey over hostage crisis

BEIRUT: Lebanon is waiting on Turkey to decide whether it will join efforts to secure the release of 25 Lebanese servicemen held hostage by Islamist militants in Arsal’s outskirts, a senior security source acquainted with the file said Monday. The source told The Daily Star that security authorities sent a letter to Ankara about 10 days ago asking for help finding a solution to the hostage crisis. Turkish officials have not responded to the plea yet, according to the source.

The source said Turkey and Qatar were the only two nations that wield enough influence to solve the five-month crisis. Contacts with Doha and Ankara over the issue since the soldiers and policemen were taken hostage in August have not yielded any results. As it stands the Lebanese government is uncertain as to why both countries chose to halt efforts to negotiate with the militants.

ISIS and Nusra Front briefly overran the northeastern border town of Arsal in early August, taking with them more than 30 Lebanese soldiers and policemen captive. They have since released eight and killed four.

The source was not optimistic about solving the crisis any time soon, saying the captors “are not serious and are divided among themselves and do not want to free the hostages.”

“They will continue to blackmail Lebanon and the hostage families.”

Disputing media reports, the source said the kidnappers did not have specific demands. The source said reports that they sought to swap the hostages with prisoners in Roumieh prison were inaccurate.

“Information leaked to Lebanese authorities was that the [captors’] main demand was large amounts of cash,” he said.

On Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblatt’s remarks about “serious efforts” made by the captors that would likely end the hostage ordeal, the source said a similar proposal made earlier by Health Minister Wael Abu Faour had been rejected by the militants.

The source did not want to reveal the details of the offer. It had been communicated by the militants to Arsal Deputy Mayor Ahmad Fliti, who was appointed by the PSP to negotiate with the militants.

Prime Minister Tammam Salam and his government are in favor of a comprehensive solution to the crisis, something which seems almost impossible, the security source added.

The source said one of the strongest cards the government holds – to execute Islamist prisoners who have death sentences issued against them – requires political consensus, which does not exist.

He stressed that the government would not collapse should a negative development, such as the execution of another soldier, undermine negotiations. “But the government could enter a state of paralysis and lack productivity,” the source added.

The source said Jumblatt’s actions were spurred by pressure from his own community as seven of the hostages are Druze.

He ruled out rumors that ISIS’ military capabilities, and by extension its sway over the crisis, now exceed that of the Nusra Front, saying the latter was stronger and Nusra commander Abu Malek al-Talli had the upper hand in the Arsal area.

A Nusra Front commander told the Turkish news agency Anadolu Monday that negotiations to free the 25 Lebanese servicemen were “completely stalled” adding that there was no mediators in touch with his group.

Meanwhile, Fliti’s appointment was greeted by Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk and Justice Minister Ashraf Rifi.

The spokesperson of the families of the captives said after meeting with Machnouk Monday that the minister had assured he “supports any effort in the case that would liberate the captives from Arsal’s outskirts, especially the efforts of Ahmad Fliti.”

The spokesperson quoted Machnouk as saying that the Cabinet supported a deal that involved trading Islamist inmates in Roumieh Prison for the captives.

Later in the day, the families met with Rifi, who voiced strong support for Fliti.“I have cooperated with him on many different issues before,” Rifi said in reference to Fliti. “We trust him, his efforts and his integrity.”

While adding that Fliti was now only negotiating with ISIS, he said another communication channel was open with Nusra, but refused to disclose any details about it.

Rifi, who is the former chief of the Internal Security Forces, also said all the parties were now supportive of a swap deal to end the captives’ crisis.

According to the families’ spokesperson the new mediator is set to contact the Nusra Front for a forthcoming meeting.

Fliti, who will serve as a liaison between the militants and Abu Faour, noted that he was commissioned by only a faction in the Lebanese government and not the Cabinet as a whole. An official appointment by the Lebanese government may be possible, he said.

According to the deputy mayor, who met with ISIS militants on the outskirts of Arsal earlier Sunday, the group expressed its readiness to work with him.

2014: A Year of Action

President Barack Obama talks on the phone at the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office. December 18, 2014. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

In his State of the Union address this year, the President vowed that 2014 would be a year of action -- and he delivered on that promise.

As the year comes to a close, the results are crystal clear. The President and his Administration have taken more than 80 new executive actions this year to help grow the economy, create jobs, address the threat of climate change, and strengthen the middle class. And today, we’re releasing a year-end report detailing those actions.

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Future-Hezbollah dialogue kicks off Tuesday: source

BEIRUT: The first session of the long-awaited dialogue between the Future Movement and Hezbollah will kick off Tuesday at Speaker Nabih Berri’s residence, a Hezbollah source said.

Speaking to The Daily Star Monday, the source said that representing Hezbollah in the talks would be Hussein Khalil, a political aide to Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah, Industry Minister Hussein Hajj Hasan and MP Hasan Fadlallah.

Nader Hariri, former Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s chief of staff, Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk and MP Samir Jisr would attend on behalf of the Future Movement.

Berri, who has been preparing for the talks over the past couple of months, will host the first dialogue session at his residence in the Ain al-Tineh neighborhood of Beirut.

The main goals of the dialogue between the arch-foes will be to reduce Sunni-Shiite tension, pave the way for ending the seven-month-long presidential vacuum and to boost efforts to combat the rising threat of terrorism.

Sunni-Shiite divisions have been on the rise in Lebanon over the past decade, particularly following the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

But tensions between the sects in Lebanon were exacerbated with the outbreak of the war in neighboring Syria in March 2011.

The Future Movement backs the Syrian opposition while Hezbollah supports Syrian President Bashar Assad and has deployed thousands of its troops to fight alongside the Syrian army.

Lebanon has witnessed a spillover of Syria’s violence over the past years, with a spate of bombings in areas seen as sympathetic towards Hezbollah last year and earlier this year.

The bombings were claimed by radical Syrian rebel groups, including ISIS and the Nusra Front, which say the attacks are a response to Hezbollah’s military involvement in Syria.

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The Faces of Health Care: Regina M.

"I remember breaking down in tears because no longer was I going to be punished for a disease I never asked for."

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Lebanon food safety draft law to be finalized after holidays: MP

BEIRUT: Parliament’s Committee on Public Health and Social Affairs has almost finalized a food safety draft law that calls for the establishment of a single government body that would be tasked with overseeing food safety regulations and practices, the committee head said Monday.

During a press conference, MP Atef Majdalani said that “the committee reached a semi-final draft” of the food safety law. The draft is based on a proposal submitted by the late minister Bassel Fuleihan to Parliament in 2002, he added.

According to Majdalani, the current proposal, which is an amended version of the law submitted by Fuleihan, will need to be reviewed by the committee "one last time after the holidays" before it is submitted to Parliament’s joint committees.

Before its implementation, the draft proposal would also have to be voted on in Parliament, he added.

With regards to the establishment of a unified governmental body, the MP noted that the draft law calls for the establishment of an independent national committee that would work in cooperation with relevant ministries and institutions in order to regulate the implementation and management of the food safety law.

The committee, which would be comprised of academic experts specializing in food safety, would be distinct from other governmental bodies given its financial and administrative independence from the state, he said.

According to the MP, the duties of the committee would include risk monitoring, data collection, research, study publication and project management.

Majdalani noted that the committee would also be responsible for monitoring food production and transport, investigating complaints and facilitating the implementation of food safety policy.

Most importantly, the body would design and implement an alarm system that would make it easier to manage and solve any food safety hazard, in coordination with relevant authorities, he said.

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Jumblatt reiterates call to protect historic Beirut buildings

BEIRUT: Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt warned Monday against the ongoing demolition of historical buildings in Beirut, calling for legislation to protect heritage sites.

For the second week in a row, Jumblatt dedicated his column at his party’s Al-Anbaa Magazine to call for action against the destruction of old, heritage buildings in Beirut.

“If Beirut’s governor is not responsible for this file and neither is the Ministry of Culture, then who is responsible for protecting the very few remaining heritage buildings in Beirut?,” he pondered.

Jumblatt had blamed Culture Minister Rimon Raymond Areiji and Beirut’s Governor Ziad Chebib last week for the destruction of the historic Art Deco building in Gemmayzeh.

Chebib then responded by explaining that he had asked police to halt the demolition of the eastern section of the building.

As for Areiji, he said he had attempted to stop the demolition but was overruled by the Shura Council, a body that checks the legality of administrative decisions and whose decision is final.

“It is clear that confusion and jurisdiction clashes and legal vagueness are surrounding the issue of the heritage buildings in Beirut, which are falling one after the other,” Jumblatt said.

The Druze leader explained that the Shura Council revoked Areiji’s decision because “the decision did not respect the protocols stated in the 1933 heritage law.”

Jumblatt said such a development was “dangerous,” and meant that the list of protected heritage sites prepared in 1999 will no more have any legal value once challenged at the council.

He accused the council and investors of exploiting the absence of a clear state legislation on the matter in order to replace the historical houses with new projects.

“This means the elimination of what’s left of Beirut’s old memory through some buildings erected here and there, and the transformation of Beirut as a whole to skyscrapers and concrete blocks for commercial and real estate reasons,” he said.

“It is time to move quickly to enact a complete legislating for this file before it’s too late.”

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Lebanon interior minister supports new mediator: hostage families

BEIRUT: Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk supports the Progressive Socialist Party’s appointment of Arsal’s Deputy Mayor to mediate talks with the captors of 25 Lebanese servicemen, the families of the hostages said Monday.

After a meeting with the interior minister, the families held a brief press conference in which a spokesperson announced that Machnouk “supports any effort in the case that would liberate the captives from Arsal’s outskirts, especially the efforts of [Deputy Mayor] Ahmad Fliti.”

The spokesperson quoted Machnouk as saying that the Cabinet supports a deal that involves trading Islamist inmates in Roumieh Prison for the captives.

According to the spokesperson, the new mediator is set to contact the Nusra Front for a forthcoming meeting.

Health Minister Wael Abu Faour appointed Fliti to mediate talks with the Nusra Front and ISIS. Fliti told the Daily Star that he was commissioned by Abu Faour under the instruction of Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt to take charge of mediation efforts.

Fliti, who will serve as a liaison between the militants and Abu Faour, noted that he was commissioned by only a faction in the Lebanese government and not the Cabinet as a whole. An official appointment by the Lebanese government may be possible, he said.

According to the deputy mayor, who met with ISIS militants on the outskirts of Arsal earlier Sunday, the group expressed its readiness to work with him.

"I received word from [Health] Minister Wael Abu Faour that Arsal deputy Mayor Ahmad Fliti has brought with him a serious offer after he visited the kidnappers,” Jumblatt said in remarks published Monday.

The militants’ proposal “could be the key to resolving the hostage issue,” Jumblatt told local newspaper An-Nahar.

Beirut awaits Ankara response in bid to free hostages

BEIRUT: Lebanon is waiting for a response from Turkey on whether it was willing to join efforts to free the 25 Lebanese servicemen held hostage by Islamist militants on the Syria border, a senior security source said Monday.

The source told The Daily Star that security authorities sent a letter to Ankara about 10 days ago asking for help in the hostage crisis, but Turkish officials have not yet responded.

He said Turkey and Qatar are the only two countries that could help end the nearly five-month-old crisis.

The source said contacts held with Doha and Ankara since the beginning of the August crisis did not yield any results.

ISIS and Nusra Front briefly overran the northeastern border town of Arsal in early August. As they retreated they took with them more than 30 Lebanese soldiers and policemen captive in the hopes of swapping them for Islamists held in Roumieh prison and Syrian jails. They have since released eight and killed four.

The source had doubts about a happy ending in the near future, saying the captors “are not serious and are divided among themselves and do not want to free the hostages.”

“They will continue to blackmail Lebanon and the hostage families through this precious card.”

The source said the kidnappers had no explicit demands, adding that information that they seek to swap the hostages with prisoners in Lebanese jails was inaccurate.

“Information leaked to Lebanese authorities is that the [captors’] main demands were large amounts of cash,” he said.

On Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblatt’s remarks about “serious efforts” made by the captors that will likely end the hostage ordeal, the source said a similar proposal made earlier by PSP minister Wael Abu Faour had been rejected. The source did not want to reveal details of the offer.

He said Prime Minister Tammam Salam and his government were in favor of a comprehensive solution to the crisis, something which seems almost impossible.

The source said one of the strongest cards the government holds – to execute Islamist prisoners with death sentences issued against them – requires political consensus, which does not exist.

He stressed that the government would not collapse in the event of any negative development in the crisis. “But the government could enter a state of paralysis and lack of productivity.”

The source said Jumblatt’s action was due to the pressure exerted on him by his own community given that seven of the hostages are Druze.

He ruled out rumors about ISIS’s military ability to replace Nusra in the hostage crisis, saying Nusra Front was stronger and that Nusra commander Abu Malek Al-Talli holds the upper hand in the Arsal area.

UN vote over Lebanon oil slick a 'wish come true': Environment Minister

BEIRUT: Environment Minister Mohammad Machnouk said the U.N. resolution calling on Israel to pay compensation to Lebanon over a major oil slick in 2006 was one wish that had come true among 22 made on National Environment Day last month.

In comments he made at a ministry gathering to mark the end of the year, Machnouk said the U.N. decision was “a great victory for justice, rights and environment.”

”We had made 22 wishes for the new year, and one of them was realized through the U.N. General Assembly’s resolution that demands Israel pay Lebanon $856.4 million in compensation for the oil pollution disaster it had caused during its aggression,” Machnouk said in the comments published Monday.

Lebanon marks National Environment day on Nov. 16 each year.

He vowed that the Cabinet will continue efforts to implement the resolution to force Israel to meet its financial compensation obligations.

But the resolution, which passed Friday with a 170-6 vote, is non-binding, and Israel said it will not pay.

The resolution was opposed by Israel, the United States, Canada, Australia, Micronesia and the Marshall Islands. The three countries that abstained from voting were Cameroon, Papua New Guinea and Tonga.

Machnouk also wished for a quick approval in Cabinet of the solid waste management plan “in order to turn a new page in Lebanon’s environmental record.”

Machnouk listed among the aspired achievements he hopes to seal in the near future, a roadmap for preventing pollution of Qaraoun Lake in the Bekaa, inauguration of 11 air pollution monitoring stations, and a plan for combating deforestation.

Lebanon arrests 23 for creating fake travel documents

Bodies of Air Algerie crash victims arrive in Beirut

The bodies of 19 Lebanese nationals killed when their plane crashed in Mali over the summer arrived to Beirut’s...

Maid badly injured in failed escape attempt from south Lebanon home

Maid badly injured in failed escape attempt from south Lebanon home

A Kenyan maid was badly injured Monday after a rope she was using to escape from her employer's third floor apartment...

Treasury Nomination Sparks Fight Among Democrats

Audio for this story from Morning Edition will be available at approximately 9:00 a.m. ET.

When Congress returns in 2015, it will consider the nomination of Antonio Weiss to be undersecretary of Treasury for domestic finance. The nomination is causing a fight within the Democratic Party.

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