Lebanon Now MP Oqab Saqr has accused Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun of relying on militias on the street to achieve his political objectives.

Saqr told the Kuwaiti al-Seyassah daily in an interview published on Friday that Aoun’s latest statements were “very dangerous.” They give an impression that Premier-designate Najib Miqati is his “employee.”

Premier-designate Najib Miqati has for now shelved efforts to form a de facto government and vowed to give the cabinet formation process more time after talks with Speaker Nabih Berri, Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat and other mediators.

As part of intensified efforts to end the row between Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun and President Michel Suleiman over the interior ministry portfolio, Miqati met Thursday night with Berri, Jumblat, the speaker’s advisor MP Ali Hassan Khalil, and Hussein Khalil, a political aide to Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah.

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi on Thursday returned to Beirut from the Vatican, after participating in the beatification of the late Pope John Paul II on Sunday.

Flanked by President Michel Suleiman’s representative, caretaker Interior Minister Ziad Baroud, al-Rahi told reporters at the Beirut Rafik Hariri International Airport that the minister’s latest decision to refrain from participation in the new cabinet reflected his “culture of sacrifice and giving,” lauding Baroud for “putting public welfare above all private interests.”

President Michel Suleiman suggested granting Army Commander General Jean Qahwaji the Interior Ministry portfolio in order to end the dispute over this matter, revealed As Safir newspaper on Thursday.

It added that the President’s proposal came as a response to the suggestion to appoint General Paul Matar to the position.

Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun stressed on Wednesday that Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati should respect the decisions of the majority that appointed him.

He said in an interview to OTV: “Members who don’t have a political presence in parliament should not take part in government.”

Defense Minister Elias Murr voiced his disappointment with the army’s performance during the May 7, 2008 clashes, describing then Army Commander Michel Suleiman as a coward, revealed a leaked U.S. Embassy cable dated May 13, 2008, published in al-Akhbar newspaper on Wednesday.

The WikiLeaks cable spoke of a meeting between Murr and then U.S. Charge d’Affaires Michele Sison during which the minister accused Suleiman of having had struck up a deal with Hizbullah in the May clashes.

Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati held talks with President Michel Suleiman on Wednesday on the ongoing efforts to form a new government, reported Voice of Lebanon Radio.

The meeting focused on maintaining contacts to ease various sides’ demands in the government formation, while a final structure for the Cabinet is expected soon.

MP Marwan Hamadeh called on President Michel Suleiman and Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati to “liberate themselves from the cheap blackmail” that is forcing them to form a weak government that would be a failure on the Lebanese, Arab, and international scenes.

He said in a statement from parliament on Tuesday: “The silence of four months can no longer be maintained over the coup against the prime minister … as representatives of the popular majority that still stands on the Lebanese scene, we should make a few points clear before the collapse of the last of the constitutional institutions.”

President Michel Suleiman hoped on Tuesday that al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden’s death would help pave the way for comprehensive peace in the Middle East.

He hoped that Israel would be pressured to this end and in order to settle the Palestinian crisis.

Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat has reportedly described President Michel Suleiman as a “weak personality surrounded by supporters of the Syrian regime.”

In a WikiLeaks cable dated September 17, 2008 and published by al-Joumhouria newspaper, the Druze leader also described Speaker Nabih Berri as a “big liar.”