Russian Ambassador to Lebanon Alexander Zasypkin stated on Monday that Moscow will continue to exert efforts and hold contacts to help Lebanon conclude its stalled presidential elections.

The municipal chief of the northeastern town of Arsal Ali al-Hujeiri, voiced calls on Monday for the postponement of the municipal elections in the town, citing the unstable security situation and polling stations that have been situated in remote areas, the Kuwaiti al-Anba daily reported.

“The security situation in Arsal does not allow the election process, particularly since the Interior Ministry has set, in collaboration with the Lebanese army, six polling stations two of which are four kilometers away from the residence of voters, which will affect their enthusiasm,” he told the newspaper in an interview.

Al-Mustaqbal Movement chief MP Saad Hariri met with Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geaega where talks highlighted the necessity to elect a president and the need to unite efforts between the two parties in the upcoming municipal elections, Hariri's media office said on Monday.

The meeting took place late on Sunday in the Center House in the presence of Lebanese Forces media officer Melhem Riach and Hariri's adviser Ghattas Khoury.

Agriculture Minister Akram Shehayyeb assured on Monday that the trash management plan is going smoothly and slammed reports claiming that it is going in circles and is doomed to fail.

“The waste management plan is going the right way contrary to what some people think. The plan was initially put in order to prevent the crisis from reverting,” he told the pan-Arab al-Hayat daily in an interview.

Al-Mustaqbal movement chief MP Saad Hariri held a meeting on Saturday with Turkish Prime Minister Ahmed Davutoglu where talks focused on the developments in the region and Lebanon, his media office reported.

After the meeting Hariri said: “We discussed the situation in Lebanon and the region particularly the violations of the recent armistice agreement in Syria. There is no doubt that everyone is on alert at this stage.”

Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat stated on Saturday that he does not oppose the election of MP Michel Aoun for the top state post if his March 8 ally MP Suleiman Franjieh withdraws from the race.

“I don't oppose the election of Aoun for the presidency if the national interest requires, and if Franjieh withdraws from the race. The most important thing is to elect a president,” Jumblat told news website elaph in an interview.

Tripoli police arrested on Saturday four individuals said to have been hacking online accounts and involved in cyber heist, the Internal Security Forces said via its Twitter account.

“The police in the northern city of Tripoli arrested four professional hackers on charges of stealing money,” the tweet said.

The United Stated provided Lebanon with sophisticated reconnaissance airplanes that enabled its army to closely monitor the mobility of militants on the outskirts of Lebanese regions, the Voice of Lebanon radio (93.3) said on Saturday.

The planes enable the army to prevent the militants from infiltrating the porous Lebanese border with Syria, reports said.

The Lebanese army arrested a fugitive on Saturday during raids that it carried out in the area of al-Sharawneh in Baalbek, the National News Agency reported.

Al-Mustaqbal movement chief MP Saad Hariri voiced calls on founder of the Free Patriotic Movement MP Michel Aoun to find a middle ground on the issue of the presidential election in a bid to cross the difficult stage that Lebanon is witnessing and help end the vacuum at the top state post, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Saturday.

Hariri has conveyed a message to Aoun early this week, urging him “not to depend on some changes that have been frequently circulated by his friends because they are unfounded,” informed sources told the daily on condition of anonymity.