The cabinet withdrew on Wednesday the funding of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon article from the 2012 draft state budget.

The government members agreed to fund the STL from outside the state budget.

Cabinet approved on Wednesday the 2012 state budget draft law, referring it to parliament, and with Prime Minister Najib Miqati announcing that the Special Tribunal for Lebanon had been funded.

He revealed: “Lebanon paid its share of the funding this morning outside of the state budget.”

French President Francois Hollande reiterated on Friday that his country will continue to defend Lebanon’s independence, sovereignty and unity of its territories.

“Our main concern is to preserve the stability (in Lebanon),” Hollande said in a cable sent to Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea.

The March 14 forces on Thursday called on the government to “resign immediately” and called for referring the assassination attempts against Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea and MP Boutros Harb to the U.N.-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon.

In a statement issued after an emergency meeting at Harb’s residence in the wake of a failed attempt on his life, the March 14 forces also called on the government to immediately hand over telecom data linked to recent assassinations bids to the relevant security agencies.

Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblt received on Thursday a cable from French President Francois Hollande, who voiced his country’s keenness on Lebanon’s stability and security.

He said in a cable to the Druze leader: “We have long defended Lebanon’s independence and sovereignty and we will continue on defending the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.”

Special Tribunal for Lebanon Prosecutor Norman Farrell submitted to the Trial Chamber a document revealing that the Lebanese authorities didn’t find any death certificates for the four suspects in the 2005 assassination of ex-Premier Rafik Hariri.

“The prosecution asked the competent Lebanese authorities on May 25 to present any document, including death certificates, for any of the four accused,” Farrell said, according to An Nahar newspaper published on Wednesday.

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon’s Trial Chamber held a hearing on Wednesday on defense motions challenging the jurisdiction of the court.

The defense teams for the four Hizbullah members indicted in the 2005 assassination of ex-Premier Rafik Hariri filed the separate motions last month although their arguments overlap.

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon on Tuesday released a media advisory reminding that its Trial Chamber will hold sessions on June 13 and 14 to hear arguments from the Prosecution, the defense counsel and the legal representatives of victims on the tribunal’s jurisdiction and the legality of its creation.

Below is the full text of the media advisory:

A March 14 opposition delegation is expected on Saturday to deliver President Michel Suleiman a memo on its stance on the national dialogue that is set to be held at Baabda Palace next week, An Nahar daily reported on Friday.

Sources close to al-Mustaqbal bloc leader Fouad Saniora told the newspaper that a parliamentary delegation will present Suleiman with the memo and later hold a press conference to announce its details.

The lead legal representative and the two co-legal representatives designated by the Registrar of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon to represent the victims of the February 14, 2005 attack have been sworn in, the STL announced in a statement issued on Tuesday.

The three legal representatives will represent the 58 people who were granted the right to participate as victims in the proceedings by the Pre-Trial judge.