A German court on Thursday convicted four men who procured tens of thousands of euros worth of supplies for the ultraconservative Ahrar al-Sham group in Syria of supporting a terrorist organization.

Prime Minister Tammam Salam chaired a cabinet meeting on Thursday at the Grand Serail, where the ministers discussed the agenda's items that have been pending since the last session two weeks ago.

The session witnessed a hot debate between the ministers over the thorny issue of appointments.

AMAL MP Qassem Hashem defended on Thursday Speaker Nabih Berri against claims that he is hindering the election of a president and stressed that the Speaker has always sought for ending the vacuum at the top Christian post.

“Speaker Berri has never sought-after disruption, he has always worked to find a solution that ends the vacuum at the level of the presidency,” said Qassem in an interview to VDL (93.3).

State Commissioner to the Military Court Judge Hani al-Hajjar has given the orders to rearrest Sheikh Bassam al-Tarras, who was briefly held and then released before Eid al-Adha, in the case of the Ksara bombing that rocked the city of Zahle in August, al-Akhbar daily reported on Thursday.

In September, the General Security held Sheikh al-Tarras in accusations of meeting Islamic State members and the attack's mastermind during a visit to Turkey.

The Maronite Bishops Council voiced calls on Wednesday to abide by the constitution and elect a new head of state without imposing any prior conditions, the National News Agency reported.

During their monthly meeting in Diman under Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi, they urged the political leaders to be up to their responsibility.

Al-Mustaqbal MP Ammar Houri said on Wednesday that MP Michel Aoun tried to polish up his image with al-Mustaqbal Movement, as he emphasized that a solution for the presidential file is in the hands of Hizbullah.

“Freeing the presidency file is in the hands of Hizbullah which does not want any candidate for the presidency, not even General (Michel) Aoun,” said Houri in an interview to VDL (100.5).

The General Security arrested several Syrian nationals in the southern town of Ain el-Dilb east of the city of Sidon accused of having links to terror groups in Syria, the National News Agency reported on Wednesday.

The suspects were arrested for their involvement in terror groups and for violating the residency permit rules in Lebanon.

Although Prime Minister Tammam Salam has called the ministers on Tuesday for a cabinet meeting this week, but there are no guarantees that it would convene successfully knowing that several ministers have not confirmed attendance as yet, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Wednesday

Until Tuesday evening, ministers of Hizbullah and the Free Patriotic Movement have not confirmed whether they will attend or boycott the session, complementing a similar step when they boycotted the latest cabinet meeting.

Speaker Nabih Berri defended the so-called “package deal” on the presidency, which was subject to criticism from Christian officials, and assured that it does not include any item specifying the jurisdictions of the president, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Wednesday.

“They say that the package deal is over, for me it still exists. Let them say what they want, it's their opinion not mine,” Berri's visitors quoted him as saying.

Al-Mustaqbal Movement chief ex-PM Saad Hariri held talks in Moscow with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, his media office said on Tuesday.

Hariri had arrived in Moscow for talks with Russian officials on the latest developments in Lebanon and the region, and the bilateral relations between the two countries, added his media office.