Kerry arrives in Beirut on unannounced visit

John Kerry arrived in Beirut yesterday, beginning an unannounced visit that is the first by a US secretary of state to Lebanon in five years, an AFP journalist said.
Kerry is in Beirut to announce $290 million in aid to boost UN efforts in Syria and neighbouring countries hosting refugees, a US diplomatic source said. He will also urge Lebanon to fill the country's presidential void "as soon as possible".
Kerry's visit comes more than three years into a conflict that is raging in neighbouring Syria, which has had major political, humanitarian and security consequences on tiny Lebanon.
According to the diplomatic source, Kerry would meet Lebanese Prime Minister Tammam Salam, parliament speaker Nabih Berri and Maronite Patriarch Beshara Rai.
"The secretary is going to announce our next response to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and UN system appeals," said the source, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Syria's war has created an unprecedented refugee crisis, pushing some three million people out of their country, including more than a million into Lebanon.
The visit also comes during a protracted political crisis in Lebanon, which has been without a president since last month because of unbreachable divisions between pro- and anti-Damascus camps in the country.