ARAB, ISLAMIC DIALOGUE ON LEBANON CALLED FOR

Senior Shiite scholar Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah said that the current period requires Arab and Islamic efforts to settle the remaining problems and complications, and praised Iran’s contribution toward reaching agreement among Lebanese leaders in Qatar. In a phone conversation with Iranian Ambassador Mohammad Reza Shibani, Fadlallah stressed the need for Arab and Islamic countries to communicate and hold “deep” dialogue over Arab and Islamic issues. According to Fadlallah, discussions should tackle the issue of the Palestinian cause and ways to protect the Palestinians against continuous Israeli massacres, in addition to the suffering of the Iraqi people, which he said, “was caused by the American occupation of Iraq.” Under Arab League auspices, rival Lebanese leaders clinched a deal to end the political feud that exploded into deadly clashes earlier this month and nearly drove the country into a new civil war. The agreement, announced after days of tense talks in Doha, will see the election of a president for Lebanon on May 25 and the creation of a unity government in which the opposition will have a power of veto.