Al-Hariri starts a Gulf tour

The Lebanese prime minister Rafik al-Hariri starts Sunday a tour that will cover the Vatican and Washington, Ottawa and Paris. He will be accompanied by the Lebanese ministers of State Pierre Helo and Baheij Tabarra and the minister of the evacuees Marwan Hammadeh, the minister of industry George Afram and other cabinet ministers.

On Monday morning the Lebanese prime minister will meet in Rome with businessmen and then will move to the Vatican to meet with Pope John Paul II. Al-Hariri's meetings in Washington starts on Tuesday morning with the US President George Bush at the White House and certain members of the US administration team. Congress members and the Congressional advisor for national security. Next Sunday, al-Hariri will be in Ottawa on top of a delegation which will arrive separately besides the ministers accompanying him to Washington including the Lebanese minister of communications Jan Loi Miqrahi.

Al-Hariri will leave Ottawa on Tuesday morning heading for Paris for meetings with high ranking French officials in his way back to Beirut.