47,000 persons may be granted Lebanese citizenship

Lebanese sources in Cairo confirmed today that a new law is to be issued soon that would grant Lebanese citizenship to 47,000 persons -- 42,000 Christians and 5,000 Moslems -- before the end of Lebanese President Elias Hrawi's term as president on November 24.

The sources told ArabicNews.com that the law will be signed by Hrawi and Prime Minister Rafik Hariri soon.

The sources stated that the law aims at balancing out a prior decree that granted citizenship to a much larger number of Moslems than Christians.