Keyword: Lebanon

French far-right presidential election candidate Marine Le Pen, on a visit to Lebanon where she has met with a number of officials, cancelled her planned meeting with the head of the Lebanese Sunni Muslim authority Dar al-Fatwa, after she refused to wear a headscarf when she arrived for the encounter, despite having been previously notified of the requirement.

Front National part leader and presidential candidate Marine Le Pen began a two-day visit to Lebanon by meeting with Lebanese President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister Saad Hariri on Monday ahead of talks with business and religious leaders.

Arriving in Beirut ahead of visits to Egypt and Jordan, the French president pledged increased financial and military aid for Lebanon, home to 1m Syrian refugees.

The Saudi financing ended last month over Shia military group Hezbollah's support of Syrian President Bashar Assad and its actions inside Lebanon.

Helicopters, warships, combat and transport vehicles and missiles are part of the Saudi-funded French weapons which start arriving on Monday.

Romain Caillet, a researcher with the French Institute for the Near East, denies links with terror groups and blames Hezbollah for entry ban.

Salman bin Abdul-Aziz and President François Hollande will discuss a Saudi-financed French weapons deal to help counter jihadist threat.

French foreign minister Laurent Fabius, speaking in Jordan, said France would back moves to place Lebanese Shia militant group on terror list.

Crew of an Air France Paris-Beirut flight re-routed for security reasons to Damascus sought cash from passengers for refuelling to reach Cyprus.