DAILY SCOPE: Roadmap to Solve Hostage Crisis, US-Cuba Diplomatic Relations See Light

Local Editor

NEWSPAPERS HEADLINES:

AS-SAFIR:

Salam: This is Roadmap to Retrieve Soldiers
Daesh Behind Assassination of Tunisia's Baleed, Barahimi

AL-AKHBAR:

Daesh Launches Battle to Reach Arsal

AL-LIWAA:

European Judiciary Drops Hamas Out of List of Terror

AN-NAHAR:

European Parliament Votes to Recognize Palestine, European Court Removes Hamas from List of Terror
US, Cuba Declare Historic Change: Prisoners Swap and Resuming Diplomatic Relations

DAILY STAR:

EU Court: Take Hamas Off Terror List
Historic Shift as Obama Ends Isolation of Cuba

Standing alone after the Qatari mediator withdrew from the case of the soldiers abducted by terrorist groups, and Turkey abstained from interfering, the Lebanese government became obliged to be self-dependent and solve this hurdle alone.

Lebanese newspapers on Thursday focused on the roadmap to liberating the Lebanese army hostages, also tackled the Future-Hizbullah dialogue which should pave the way for presidential elections and break the governmental status quo, and the new battle launched by Daesh to advance into Arsal region.

Moreover, the dailies focused on the EU court removal of Hamas from the List of Terror and the new era of diplomatic relations between the US and Cuba, after the US lifted isolation off the latter.

Starting with as-Safir newspaper, it cites the daily count of Lebanon's presidential void "Lebanon remains without president for the 208th day successively." The paper noted that since Lebanon has become alone in the hurdle of freeing the Lebanese army hostages, and therefore caretaker PM Tammam Salam has put his utmost effort to find the proper solution to the matter, and deal with the mood swings of the abductors, the internal fight on how to solve the matter since the case has sectarian dimensions.

The Prime Minister, who is frustrated with the attitude of some sides in Lebanon and the way they have been dealing with this file, he considers the following as the roadmap to solving the case, as reported as-Safir:

The abductors must guarantee to stop executing more soldiers, as negotiations cannot take place under threat of knife.

The abductors must determine their demands and give a final word on it.
Internal sides must stop interference in this case, and stop the political play.

The abductors must clearly agree on the mediator and stop all demands and offers through media outlets.

The government is ready to negotiate but as in a one comprehensive swap deal.
The families of the abducted soldiers must remain calm, get out of the streets and give the government some space to deal with the matter.

Media outlets must not circulate harmful information or details on the issue.

Meanwhile, Head of the "Free Patriotic Movement" MP Michel Aoun met on Wednesday with a delegation from the families of the servicemen who were kidnapped from the northeastern border town of Arsal in August.

He said after the talks: "An officer from the Internal Security Forces and another from the army should be tasked with keeping the families up-to-date with the developments linked to the case."

"We discovered that we have wronged them because we know nothing of the negotiations," Aoun said, adding "We should change our attitude towards the families, who should be in on the truth," he stressed.

For its part, al-Akhbar newspaper wrote that Daesh ["ISIL"] terrorist group has started a war against the so-called Free Syrian Army in the Qalamoun region. Sources from within the battlefield assured to al-Akhbar that the next target for Daesh is the Lebanese town of Arsal.

The source noted that Daesh intends to kill all FSA soldiers who refuse to pay pledge to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, head of the terrorist organization. Meanwhile, it remains unknown if al-Nusra front will stay on the sideline and take no action in battle.

On another not, the Lebanese intelligence forces arrested a major leader from the Abdallah Azzam Brigades in a well-set ambush. According to security sources, the arrested is from Majdal Anjar, and is of the same importance of the terrorist mastermind Naim Abbas, adding that he confessed to have transported the suicide bombers who executed the attacks in Dahr al-Baidar and Tayouneh last June.

Meanwhile, the dailies touched on the historic change in US-Cuba relations. President Barack Obama announced the re-establishment of diplomatic relations with Cuba Wednesday and declared an end to America's "outdated approach" to the communist island in a historic shift aimed at ending a half-century of Cold War enmity. "These 50 years have shown that isolation has not worked," Obama said from the White House. "It's time for a new approach."

As Obama spoke to Americans, Cuban President Raul Castro addressed his own nation from Havana, saying that while the two countries still have profound differences in areas such as human rights and foreign policy, they must learn to live together "in a civilized manner." Wednesday's announcements followed more than a year of secret talks between the U.S. and Cuba, including clandestine meetings in Canada and the Vatican and personal involvement from Pope Francis. The re-establishment of diplomatic ties was accompanied by Cuba's release of American Alan Gross, who had been imprisoned for five years, and the swap of a Cuban who had spied for the U.S. for three Cubans jailed in Florida. Gross spoke with Obama from the plane carrying him back to the US.

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According to the Daily Telegraph, a 15-year-old girl was prevented from joining the terror group "ISIL"after police dramatically stopped her plane on the runway at Heathrow.

The youngster, from Tower Hamlets, London, had secretly saved up money for her flight without her parents' knowledge and tried to flee to Syria.

But counter-terrorism officers, who had been tipped over about her plans, raced to the airport and stopped her plane which had already begun taxiing on to the runway.

The flight, which was heading to Turkey, was turned around while officers took the youngster off and returned her to her family.

However, in an unrelated case, it emerged a second 15-year-old girl who officers had also been trying to trace had managed to fly out earlier and is now feared to be in Syria.

Source: al-Ahed news