Special report: Israel-Lebanon conflicts [Gallery] [Videos]
Israel, Lebanon agree on ceasefire
BEIRUT, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- Lebanese families of those killed during the war
with Israel were to begin receiving compensation on Friday, the Lebanese
Cabinet announced on Thursday.
After attending the Cabinet's weekly meeting in Downtown Beirut, Information
Minister Ghazi Aridi said an initiative proposed by the United Arab Emirates to
compensate families hurt by the war had started on Wednesday.
He added that the government would create lists of those wounded in the war and
that bills paid for medical treatment would be refunded.
Aridi also said Russia would join the countries helping with Lebanese
reconstruction by restoring several destroyed bridges after a cooperation
protocol was signed between the relevant departments.
Lebanese government has been heavily criticized by donor countries, aid organizations
and the Lebanese public for being too slow to compensate people for
war-time losses and for failing to lay out a well-studied plan for using the
money.
Before the meeting, Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora described his talks
with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri earlier in the day as "great."
As for Israel's continued occupation of Lebanese territory, Siniora said he had
sent a memo to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who he said was "following up
on the issue."
Aridi told reporters that Siniora would also raise the Lebanese-Israeli
issue when he visited Germany and the EU Parliament next week.
Asked if he would attend Hezbollah's victory rally on Friday, Siniora
reiterated that he had not been invited.
"Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah (Hezbollah leader) is known for his patriotism and
I am sure that he is keen on preserving the country's stability," he said.
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