Lebanese parliament speaker's office announced on Friday that a parliamentary session to elect Lebanon's president was postponed for the 12th time to Jan. 21.

The delay came a day after Arab League (AL) Secretary General Amr Moussa held marathon talks with Lebanese leaders, including Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, in an effort to promote "consensus" on an Arab initiative aimed at ending the ongoing presidential crisis.

However, Berri's office said in a statement announcing the postponement that the move was prompted by the "good will" efforts exerted by Moussa to settle the ongoing crisis.

The statement carried by the state-run National News Agency said the decision to postpone the session was "in line with the goodwill efforts exerted by Moussa to implement decisions adopted by Arab foreign ministers."

Moussa has been in Beirut since Monday meeting officials of the various political factions in an effort to facilitate the election of Army Commander Gen. Michel Suleiman as president.

His efforts, however, have not resulted in a breakthrough yet.

Moussa, armed with international support for the Arab foreign ministers' initiative, will seek the approval of the feuding Lebanese parties for the three-point Arab plan which was endorsed in Cairo on Sunday.

The three-point plan aimed at immediately electing Suleiman as Lebanese president and proceeding to forming a government of national unity and drafting a new electoral law.

Lebanese presidential seat has been vacant since former President Emile Lahoud ended his term on Nov. 24, and the sharply divided Lebanese parliament has delayed the elections for eleven times without a consensus.

The two camps have agreed in principle to elect Suleiman to replace Emile Lahoud, but are still divided on how to amend the constitution to allow for his election, as well as on the shape and policies of the future government.

Lebanese ruling coalition and the opposition have been separated by a wide chasm since six of the latter's ministers resigned from Prime Minister Fouad Seniora's government in November 2006.
 
(Xinhua News Agency January 12, 2008)