A key Hezbollah ally has warned that an international indictment of members of the Islamic militant group in the killing of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri could lead to new civil strife in Lebanon.

A UN-backed court investigating the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri has issued four arrest warrants.

While the pro-democracy uprisings in the Arab world suggest there is little support for al-Qaida’s ideology but the threat has not entirely gone away, writes Brian Murphy

Iranian-supporting Hezbollah’s choice for Lebanon’s next prime minister won parliamentary support today, capping the group’s steady rise in power and sparking street riots by opponents.

A billionaire businessman with close ties to Syria emerged today as the candidate favoured by Hezbollah to head Lebanon’s next government.

Hezbollah supporters gathered in the streets of Beirut early today after a UN tribunal filed indictments over the assassination of former prime minister Rafik Hariri, prompting several schools to close as nervous parents withdrew their children from class.

Talks to form a new Lebanese government have been postponed for a week.

The leader of Hezbollah defended the decision to bring down Lebanon’s Western-backed government, saying the Shiite militant group did so without resorting to violence and will not be intimidated by world reaction.

Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister is seeking international support after Hezbollah brought down his government.

The UN’s special co-ordinator for Lebanon said he plans to visit Israel next week with the UN commander in southern Lebanon to discuss Israel’s decision “in principle” to pull troops out of the northern half of a village that straddles the border.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was welcomed by thousands of Lebanese supporters today in a visit that underscores the deep divisions between the Hezbollah militant group and Lebanon’s pro-western factions.

Western-backed billionaire Saad Hariri pledged to work for a national unity government in Lebanon that includes his Hezbollah rivals shortly after being appointed his country’s next prime minister today.

US SECRETARY of state Hillary Rodham Clinton reassured the Lebanese people yesterday that Washington supports “voices of moderation” and will never make a deal with Syria that undermines the country’s interests.

AN international tribunal to prosecute suspects in the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri was officially opened yesterday at a ceremony in a village outside The Hague.

An international tribunal to prosecute suspects in the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri opened at a ceremony in a village outside The Hague today.

British Foreign Secretary David Miliband is today due to meet Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the latest stage of a visit to the Middle East which has already involved talks with senior figures in Israel and the Palestinian territories.

Lebanon’s parliament elected army commander General Michel Suleiman as president today in a long-delayed vote that was a key step toward restoring political stability.

Running gunbattles raged in parts of Beirut after the leader of Hezbollah accused Lebanon's Western-backed government of declaring war on his Shiite militant group. At least four people were killed and eight wounded in the capital.

France is cutting off talks with Syria until Damascus shows its willingness to let Lebanon elect a new president, Nicolas Sarkozy says.

Prime Minister Fuad Saniora sought to calm the Lebanese today - the country's first day without a president - assuring them that the military, which has vowed to stay out of politics, is on the streets to prevent violence while deadlocked factions work to resolve the crisis.

Police and army troops in Lebanon sealed off downtown Beirut today as the parliament tried to meet to elect a new head of state.

Lebanese leaders today pledged to press ahead with a divisive election for president, to be held in Parliament in the coming days, despite the car bombing assassination of an anti-Syrian MP.

THE United Nations Security Council yesterday said it would not let the murder of a Lebanese anti-Syrian politician derail plans for a tribunal into the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri.

A powerful bomb killed a pro-government parliament member and four others today in a Christian suburb east of the Lebanese capital Beirut, security officials said.

Police manned roadblocks and rounded up supporters of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif today as he prepared to end seven years in exile and return to Pakistan to lead a campaign to topple the country’s US-allied military ruler.

Pakistan’s government today urged exiled former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif not to return home, saying he should honour a promise he made to stay away after being ousted from power.

A UN inquiry has identified people who may have been involved in the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri and is investigating new information about the buyers of a van used in the bombing, the chief investigator said.

A car bomb explosion killed six UN peacekeepers patrolling a southern Lebanon road in an attack that could have serious repercussions beyond Lebanon’s borders.

A car bomb explosion killed six UN peacekeepers patrolling a southern Lebanon road today in an attack that could have serious repercussions beyond Lebanon’s borders.

An explosion, apparently from a bomb-rigged car, rocked Beirut’s seafront today, killing an anti-Syrian MP and nine others, security officials said.

HEZBOLLAH yesterday denounced a UN decision to form an international tribunal on former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri’s assassination as a “violation” of the nation’s sovereignty.

Hezbollah today denounced a UN decision to form an international tribunal in former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri’s assassination as a “violation” of the nation’s sovereignty.

The United Nations Security Council has approved a resolution to unilaterally establish an international tribunal to prosecute suspects over the assassination of Lebanon’s former prime minister Rafik Hariri.

People flooded out of a besieged refugee camp in Lebanon last night after three days of fighting between Lebanese troops and Islamic militants.

France’s new foreign minister today condemned a deadly bomb attack near a busy Beirut shopping centre, and reaffirmed the importance to France of Lebanon’s sovereignty and stability.

Lebanese army tanks have pounded a shadowy group suspected of ties to al-Qaida, targeting its hideouts inside a Palestinian refugee camp after hours of clashes killed at least 22 soldiers and 17 militants.

Jacques Chirac urged his compatriots to stay united and proud of the nation he led for 12 years in his final presidential appeal tonight.

Fresh off a whirlwind yachting break, French president-elect Nicolas Sarkozy returned to work with a meeting due today with Tony Blair.

World leaders rushed to congratulate France’s president-elect Nicolas Sarkozy tonight, hoping he would help boost international efforts to address issues from climate change and Middle East peace to salvaging the EU’s beleaguered constitution.

US House of Representatives leader Nancy Pelosi again enraged President Bush, challenging the White House on Middle East policy in a meeting with Syria’s leader and insisting “the road to Damascus is a road to peace”.

A small bomb at the American University of Beirut was defused by police today.

Bomb blasts killed three people on commuter buses and politicians blamed Syria, stirring fears of clashes between Hezbollah and government supporters at a massive rally today to mark the assassination of Lebanon’s former prime minister.

Bomb blasts hit a pair of commuter buses in a co-ordinated attack that killed three people near Beirut today, on the eve of a massive rally marking the 2005 assassination of Lebanon’s former prime minister.

A pair of bombs minutes apart tore through two buses near a mountain town north-east of Beirut today.