Hizbullah has accumulated 45,000 missiles that pose a threat to Israel, a senior defense ministry official has said, claiming that Iran and Syria supplied the missiles to the party through ships, planes and trains.

The Israeli defense ministry’s director of policy and political-military affairs, Amos Gilad, told the Kuwaiti newspaper al-Rai over the weekend that Lebanon's leaders are unaware of these developments, creating a vacuum that has given rise to a new, independent entity he dubbed "Hizbullastan."

Sources close to Premier Najib Miqati said Sunday that the appointments of civil servants would take back their course after they caused the suspension of cabinet sessions on Feb. 1.

In remarks to An Nahar newspaper, the sources said that Miqati is working on speeding the process of appointments through meetings with the Civil Service Council.

Al-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc leader Fouad Saniora reiterated his demand for parliament’s legitimization of extra-budgetary spending away from the “logic of vengeance” as a meeting scheduled to be held on Monday by the parliament bureau and the heads and secretaries of committees will seek to settle the issue.

Saniora held talks with President Michel Suleiman at Baabda palace on Saturday. His sources told An Nahar daily on Sunday that the two officials discussed extra-budgetary spending and Speaker Nabih Berri’s pledge to resolve the issue before a legislative session on March 5.

Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat described Syrian President Bashar Assad as a “megalomaniac,” calling for the arming of the Syrian opposition.

Jumblat told the French newspaper Le Monde that his last meeting with Assad was “surreal.”

Rear Admiral Luiz Henrique Caroli handed over on Saturday the command of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon Maritime Task Force to Rear Admiral Wagner Lopes de Moraes Zamith aboard the Brazilian Flagship Frigate “UNIĂO.”

“The Lebanese Navy has demonstrated, time and again, its professionalism and outstanding commitment towards securing Lebanese waters,” UNIFIL Commander Maj.-Gen. Paolo Serra said.

Ten injured Syrian nationals were transferred to hospitals in Tripoli after crossing from Homs into Lebanon through al-Qaa border town, the National News Agency reported on Saturday.

The Lebanese Red Cross helped transporting the injured civilians to the hospitals.

President Michel Suleiman criticized on Saturday time wasted over disputes among political leaders, which he said is hindering the proper functioning of the state.

He said: “The political mentality which is based on sectarian distribution of power is impeding the rise of the state.”

Syrian national, Abdul Hamid al-Amin, succeeded in stealing LL15 million from his Lebanese friend, George Elias Farha, reported the National News Agency on Saturday.

It said that Amin and Farha were headed to meet a third person when the latter forgot his mobile phone in his car.

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon recently presented to the Lebanese government the names of three possible replacements for outgoing Special Tribunal for Lebanon Prosecutor Judge Daniel Bellemare, reported the daily An Nahar on Saturday.

A western diplomatic source revealed that Ban had sent a letter to the government with two or three replacements.

Cabinet is expected to resume its sessions on Monday ahead of President Michel Suleiman’s official visit to Romania, reported the daily An Nahar on Saturday.

It said that the session will be held at the Baabda Palace and it will not tackle any contentious issues, such as the appointments of top civil servants.