Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat stressed Tuesday that his latest stances are not signs of a new political “realignment,” denying that he has requested to meet Syrian President Bashar al-Assad or Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah.

Following talks with visiting Russian presidential envoy Mikhail Margelov, Jumblat said: “What I have said is not a realignment, it is only a reminder of what was agreed around the national dialogue table. It is beneficial for one to remember things every now and then.”

The Mustaqbal bloc stressed on Tuesday that the religious diversity in Lebanon helps spread the culture of moderation and forgiveness.

It said in a statement after its weekly meeting: “The democratic system that the Arab people are aspiring for respects religious, individual, and political freedoms without causing tensions with various minorities.”

Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun slammed on Tuesday Prime Minister Najib Miqati’s recent statements, stressing that he is not targeting the Sunni sect, but the premier himself over his violation.

He said after the Change and Reform bloc’s weekly meeting: “Your sectarian bias won’t prevent us from criticizing you.”

Marada Movement leader MP Suleiman Franjieh stated on Tuesday that Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi’s recent statements reflect the concerns of the Christian community given the developments in region.

He said in a statement: “He has based his positions on Christian teaches that have defined the Christians’ role in the region.”

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi urged the Lebanese on Tuesday to forget about his statements that were allegedly taken out of context and stressed his rejection of differences in Lebanon and abroad.

At the start of his visit to the Upper Metn region, al-Rahi said: “We don’t want to shatter anyone. Lebanon needs all its citizens, parties, movements and sects.”

Special Tribunal for Lebanon Pre-Trial Judge Daniel Fransen ruled on Thursday that victims’ applications to participate in the trial relating to the February 14, 2005 assassination of former Premier Rafik Hariri should, barring exceptional circumstances, be filed before October 31, 2011.

The STL said in a statement on Tuesday: “This deadline for filing the participation requests is aimed in particular at allowing those persons who having been granted the status of a victim participating in the proceedings, to make known ‘their views and concerns’ from the start of the pre-trial stage of the case.”

Energy Minister Jebran Bassil stated on Monday that the prime minister cannot keep on covering up state employee errors over their sectarian affiliations.

He told MTV: “We have an opportunity to achieve issues we had never done before, but forgiving mistakes will not lead to the government’s success.”

Lebanese officials are holding closed-door talks as the deadline for Lebanon’s payment of its share of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon funds approaches, As Safir newspaper reported Tuesday.

Ministerial sources told the newspaper that the officials aim at finding an appropriate solution for the issue “to protect the government from any repercussions and Lebanon’s relations with the international community.”

Relations between Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat and Hizbullah seem to be reaching an all-time low after the Shiite party’s al-Manar TV station slammed the Druze leader for criticizing Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi.

Al-Manar said in reference to Jumblat in its newscast on Monday that some officials remain steadfast in their stances while others tend to swing to adjust to the “regional winds.”

Bkirki might host a meeting for Catholic church leaders to take a united stance from the developments in the region and their repercussions on Christians, involved sources told An Nahar daily published Tuesday.

The sources said that the seat of the Maronite church might host a meeting of Catholic patriarchs to garner support for Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi’s fears from the threat that the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood in Syria poses to Christians there.