BBC Monitoring

Text of report in English by privately-owned Lebanese newspaper The Daily Star website on 16 November

Beirut, 16 November: The Lebanese Broadcasting Station (LBC) television decided to call off an interview with Lebanese Forces (LF) leader Samir Ja'ja after he filed a lawsuit against the station and its general director Pierre Dahir, accusing him of fraud. "The decision to cancel the interview is an irresponsible, unprofessional and illegal one and constitutes a direct breach to the freedom of speech," a statement from the LF said Thursday.

LBC was founded by the LF in 1985.

When Ja'ja was incarcerated in 1994 and his party dissolved, the ownership the LBC was transferred to its manager at the time, Dahir.

The LF currently demands to the return of ownership, a move Dahir opposes.

Source: The Daily Star website, Beirut, in English 16 Nov 07