Tripoli, 24 April:
Lebanon’s Social Affairs Minister Wael Abou Faour has said that his country supports Libya as it works to create . . .[restrict]democracy and re-establish stability and security.?? He was speaking at the end of his two-day visit to Libya which started on Sunday. He also called for stronger Lebanese-Libyan ties.
On Sunday he and the delegation accompanying him met Prime Minister Abdurrahim Al-Kib in Tripoli.
During the meeting, attended by Libyan Social Affairs Minister Mabrouka Sharif Jibril, the two sides discussed prospects for bilateral cooperation and ways to improve relations to the benefit of both countries.
The Lebanese minister spoke particularly of cooperation in social affairs. He noted that flights between Lebanon and Libya would be re-started soon.
Given the hopes of stronger ties, Abou Faour said that it was essential that there be closure in the case of Imam Musa Sadr, the Shiite cleric who is believed to have been murdered on Qaddafi’s orders in 1978 while on a trip to Libya.
Earlier this month, the Lebanese foreign minister, Adnan Mansour, specifically flew to Tripoli to discuss the case with the Libyan government.
There is intensifying domestic pressure on the Lebanese government to find answers to what happened to Sadr and the two colleagues who vanished with him in 1978 now that the Qaddafi regime is gone.
Abou Faour also met with NTC chairman Mustafa Abdul Jalil with whom he discussed recent regional developments. [/restrict]
