Following are summaries of some of the main stories in a selection of Lebanese newspapers Saturday. The Daily Star cannot vouch for the accuracy of these reports
An-Nahar
Aoun attacks martyrs and the ghost of assassinations looms
Amid a visit to Beirut by the general prosecutor for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, Daniel Bellemare, in which he met with the families of the martyrs and those who survived assassinations starting from 2004, a security issue has surfaced and a political stance drawn ire.
Head of the Change and Reform bloc MP Michel Aoun spoke about the martyrs and particularly those who are still alive and described them as living thieves. He launched a scathing attack on the martyrs, saying: "We will not accept fake testimonies. Who knows who killed whom?"
“Someone might have been killed, another because he was a jealous husband, can we then call them our nation's martyrs?” he asked.
As for the security issue, information indicates the discovery of a plot targeting Internal Security Forces Maj. Gen. Ashraf Rifi and the head of the Intelligence Branch Wissam al-Hasan. The surfacing of such information brings back fears of a repeat to the assassinations, car bombs in Lebanon at a time when the security incidents in Syria are on the rise.
Al-Anwar
Aoun launches campaign against state
Accusations and counteraccusations on the subjects of electricity [cuts] and subsidized gas oil reached the level of insults and expressions inappropriate at the political level. While discussing these issues Friday, [Free Patriotic Movement head MP] Gen. Michel Aoun launched accusations against President Michel Sleiman, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and the prime minister [Najib Mikati]. He also attacked Hariri-style policies.
Amid the row over the electricity [cuts] and subsidized gas oil, reports emerged of security warnings. Information indicates the discovery of a plan to target Lebanese security officials in Ashrafieh. This has prompted security services to take the necessary measures.
The warning comes a day after the arrival of foreign security officials in the country. Security measures included searches of the abodes and offices of the targeted security personalities.
Meanwhile, investigations continued into the red gas oil issue. Head of the Court of Accounts Aouni Ramadan revealed that companies that profited from the distribution of the red gas oil in Tripoli reached some 100.
Al-Mustaqbal
Sleiman: what is important for Lebanon is the birth of democratic regimes in its environs
Domestic concerns lingered amid electricity cuts and the following up on the red gasoil scandal along with the political disputes that forced March 14 MP Marwan Hamadeh to respond to Energy Minister Jibran Bassil.
Amid this, President Michel Sleiman's stance, after meeting with Kataeb Party leader Amine Gemayel and representatives from the Centrist Democratic International, was notable.
Sleiman said that what concerns Lebanon is the birth of regimes in the region that respect democracy, away from sectarian extremism, and believe in the need for reforms and respect of human rights as well as allowing the participation by all in governing the public interest.
He added that the Lebanese model might convince and provide others an alternative solution to dictatorship, federalism or a system of sectarian divisions.
He also said there was a need to encourage the rise of parties based on consensus in Arab countries that have diverse constituencies or that they risked witnessing more violence and wars.
Ash-Sharq
This is how they steal energy in Lebanon
With the exception of Beirut and Mount Lebanon, half of the electricity production is stolen!
Figures taken from LBC television reveal that billions of Lebanese pounds are being lost from the treasury as a result of increasing theft. The numbers are beyond imagination.
Beirut and Mount Lebanon are the only two areas where customers actually pay 90 percent of their electricity bills but about nine percent don’t pay their bills. Despite the fact that the percentage of unpaid bills is relatively small, it does not compare to other areas where 40 to 52 percent of production is not paid. And these are big and frightening figures.
What is also surprising is that Bsharre, Zghorta, Ehden and Tripoli are the areas where theft occurs most frequently and percentages there are similar to the ones in Akkar, the Bekaa and the south.