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Saqr Charges 7 with Involvement in Tripoli Clashes

State commissioner to the military court Judge Saqr Saqr charged 7 detainees, including a Palestinian, with opening fire at the army in gunbattles in the northern city of Tripoli, the National News Agency reported on Friday.

Saqr referred the 7 men to the military examining magistrate, urging him to issue arrest warrants to reveal the identities of their accomplices.

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SSNP Hands over 2 Suspects in Assault on Policeman

Two Syrian Social National Party members, who were among several others who assaulted a security officer in Beirut's Hamra district, were handed over to the Hbeish police station on Friday.

The two men were identified as Ramzi Abdo and Mohammed Awad.

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March 14 to Hand Suleiman Memorandum over Syrian Violations

The March 14 alliance is preparing a memorandum to hand over to President Michel Suleiman over Syria’s repeated violations against Lebanon, An Nahar newspaper reported on Friday.

According to the daily, the memo will address the case of ex-Minister Michel Samaha, who was accused along with head of the Syrian National Security Bureau Ali Mamlouk and a Syrian officer identified as Brig. Gen. Adnan of plotting to assassinate political and religious figures in Lebanon and carry out terrorist attacks.

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Report: Muslim Scholars Mediate Again on 10 Pilgrims Held in Syria

The head of the Committee of Muslim Scholars, Sheikh Hassan Qaterji, said Sheikh Salem al-Rafehi travelled to Turkey to follow up the case of the 10 Lebanese pilgrims kidnapped in Syria.

Qaterji told An Nahar daily on Friday that al-Rafehi headed to Ankara based on Interior Minister Marwan Charbel’s request.

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Lebanon Set to Restore Disputed EEZ with Israel

Prime Minister Najib Miqati, who is scheduled to represent Lebanon at the United Nations General Assembly meetings in September, will reportedly discuss Lebanon’s Exclusive Economic Zone with international officials.

According to An Nahar newspaper published on Friday, Miqati will head to New York in the second half of September and is expected to tackle with U.N. leaders the dispute between Lebanon and Israel over a zone that consists of about 854 square kilometers and suspected energy reserves there that could generate billions of dollars.

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Jumblat Says March 8 to Increase 'Valium' Intake over Feltman-Khamenei Meeting

Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat mocked March 8 majority leaders for needing anti-depressant pills after U.N. Under-Secretary General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman met with Iran’s Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

“What was the impact of Sayyed Khamenei’s meeting of Feltman on some March 8 members?” Jumblat wondered in remarks published in An Nahar daily on Friday.

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Judicial Police Patrol Ambushed in Baalbek, Sergeant Killed

Gunmen killed a Sergeant from the judicial police overnight Thursday and wounded two others following an ambush that targeted their patrol in Baalbek.

Internal Security Forces general directorate issued a communique saying: “After the patrol detained two suspects, it was ambushed in al-Sharawneh neighborhood (in Baalbek) by gunmen who killed head of the patrol Sergeant Ali Nasrallah and wounded two others.”

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U.N. Warns against Attempts to Destabilize Lebanon as it Extends UNIFIL Mandate

The U.N. Security Council on Thursday warned against attempts to destabilize Lebanon as it renewed the mandate of the U.N. peacekeeping force in the country for another year.

The renewal of the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon came amid mounting concerns about the impact of the 17-month-old war in Syria on its neighbor.

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Khamenei Meets Suleiman, Says Foreign Powers Exporting Region Problems to Lebanon

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Thursday warned during talks with President Michel Suleiman in Tehran that “some foreigners are trying to export some of the problems in the region to Lebanon,” noting that such attempts can be foiled by “depending on the Resistance.”

“Some foreigners are trying to export some of the problems in the region to Lebanon, but the Lebanese groups and sects can foil such attempts by depending on the Resistance,” Iran’s news agency IRNA quoted Khamenei as telling Suleiman during a meeting on the sidelines of the Non-Aligned Movement summit hosted by Tehran.

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Syrian Ambassador on Calls for his Expulsion: They are Meaningless Demands

Syrian Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Abdul Karim Ali hoped on Thursday that all Lebanese factions would resort to internal dialogue for the sake of their country and Lebanese-Syrian ties.

He said of calls for his expulsion: “Such desires are meaningless.”

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