French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said Sunday that Damascus was “undoubtedly” behind Friday’s bomb attack against a French UNIFIL patrol in southern Lebanon.

However, the top French diplomat noted that he had no evidence to substantiate his claim.

Prime Minister Najib Miqati on Sunday said he was open to “any discussion” concerning the issue of the controversial wage increase recently adopted by the government, stressing that “we look at the issue from a realistic angle.”

During an inspection visit to the commercial district in downtown Beirut on the occasion of the holiday season, Miqati said: “I stressed yesterday that any matter related to the wage increase and rectification remains short of the major needs, but we look at the issue from a realistic angle and we’re seeking as much as possible to secure balance between needs and assets.”

Speaker Nabih Berri on Sunday noted that “there’s an attempt to depict some towns in the Bekaa” as dens for criminals.

During a meeting with Ahmed Zeidan, the manager of dairy company Liban Lait who was freed Sunday in the Bekaa Valley after a 4-day kidnap ordeal, Berri said some “major and brave towns” are being labeled as criminal, although “these towns are home to honorable people and decent tribes, but unfortunately a few individuals are tarnishing the image of these towns.”

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon praised on Sunday Lebanon’s condemnation of Friday’s attack against the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon, confirmed that he will visit Lebanon in January.

He told Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour that he will visit the country on January 13 and 14.

Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri noted on Sunday that slain MP Gebran Tueni’s call for freedom still resonates among the Lebanese, stressing that they ignited the first spark in the Arab revolts against oppression.

He said in a statement marking the sixth anniversary of Tueni’s assassination: “The struggle for freedom that he died for is achieving unprecedented victories throughout the Arab world.”

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi called on officials on Sunday to assume their responsibilities in protecting the citizens’ security and that of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon.

He said during his Sunday sermon: “They should work seriously in limiting the possession of arms in Lebanon to the legitimate security forces and leave all defense and security decisions to the political authorities.”

Hizbullah criticized on Saturday military tribunal judge Alice Shabtini’s decision to release six convicted Israeli spies, questioning her motives and deeming the incident as a dangerous development, reported the daily An Nahar on Sunday.

The Hizbullah-backed al-Manar television station reported: “This is a dangerous precedent seeing as the accused only served a little more than a month of their 5 to 10-year sentences.”

President Michel Suleiman returned to Lebanon on Saturday from a three-day visit to Armenia where he met his Armenian counterpart Serzh Sarkissian and other officials.

He stressed the importance of the agreements between the two countries, praising the “major role Lebanese of Armenian origin play in all fields in Lebanon.”

Prime Minister Najib Miqati is expected to meet with the Syndical Coordination Committee on Sunday in order to reach a solution to the wage hike crisis and persuade it to cancel its strike, reported the daily An Nahar on Sunday.

Circles close to the committee told the daily that it does not have any details about the meeting, stressing that the strike will take place as scheduled on Thursday.

The bomb that targeted the French unit in the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon on Friday was detonated a few moments before the soldiers arrived at the scene, reported the daily An Nahar on Sunday.

Security sources told the daily that casualties may have taken place had the bomb been detonated at the appropriate time, given the size and method in which it was detonated.