March 14 opposition MP Butros Harb denied on Tuesday that handing over security agencies a unique code used to identify an individual user on a GSM network known as IMSI would infringe on people’s liberties, a day after the government approved limited access to the so-called telecom data.

“It is unfortunate that there was a dispute” between the different members of the cabinet on the telecom data, Harb said during a press conference about differences during Monday’s government session on the telecom data.

President Michel Suleiman will head to Turkey in the upcoming two days to address the case of the 11 kidnapped Lebanese pilgrims in Syria.

According to An Nahar newspaper published on Tuesday, Speaker Nabih Berri revealed the information to the families of the abducted men.

U.S. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns is expected to discuss with Lebanese officials this week the repercussions of the Syrian crisis on Lebanon, An Nahar daily reported on Tuesday.

Burns arrives in Beirut on a two-day visit on Thursday and is scheduled to meet with Speaker Nabih Berri, Premier Najib Miqati, al-Mustaqbal bloc leader Fouad Saniora and Army chief Gen. Jean Qahwaji, a high-ranking source told the newspaper.

The cabinet agreed on Monday to hand over the so-called telecom data to security agencies but only within a limited geographic location and after the approval of a three-member expert judicial committee.

The deal was reached after a heated debate between the March 8 coalition ministers of the Change and Reform bloc, Hizbullah and Amal, and the government’s centrists - President Michel Suleiman, Premier Najib Miqati and ministers loyal to Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat.

The cabinet on Monday managed to reach a settlement over the case of Sheikh Ahmed Abdul Wahed and his companion and approved a plan to deploy the army on Lebanon’s northern border with Syria, during a session that focused on the turbulent security situation in the country and the draft state budget.

The cabinet also tasked a committee headed by Prime Minister Najib Miqati with following up on the issue of providing security agencies with telecom data, after a recent attempt on MP Boutros Harb’s life sparked fears of a return to political assassinations in the country.

U.S. Ambassador Maura Connelly voiced concern on Monday over the cross-border shelling into northern Lebanon that left two Lebanese and one Syrian refugee dead.

Connelly “voiced U.S. government concern over recent reports of cross-border shelling into northern Lebanon and expressed her condolences for the deaths of Lebanese civilians,” the U.S. embassy said in a statement.

Prime Minister Najib Miqati held several meetings on Monday to discuss the possibility of referring the killing of Sheikh Ahmed Abdul Wahed and his companion to the Judicial Council.

“The ministers will vote on the issue just like all the other decision taken by the cabinet,” Justice Minister Shakib Qortbawi told reporters at the Grand Serail after meeting with the premier.

The Change and Reform bloc attended Monday’s cabinet session after mulling the participation of its minister to address the recent security incidents across Lebanon.

The bloc, led by Free Patriotic Movement MP Michel Aoun, held a meeting before the session that convened at the Baabda Palace on Monday afternoon.

The cabinet is expected to discuss on Monday the draft state budget that seeks to appease citizens and a series of security incidents that have been shaking the country in the past weeks.

An Nahar daily said that agreement has been reached to lower the spending without imposing any taxes. An earlier proposal called for increasing the Value Added Tax from 10 to 12 percent, which faced opposition from several ministers.

President Michel Suleiman is set to travel to France on Thursday where is expected to hold talks with his French counterpart Francois Hollande to highlight the importance of Lebanese-French ties and tackle the latest developments in Lebanon and the region, especially Syria, reported the daily al-Mustaqbal on Sunday.

Diplomatic sources said that Hollande will likely encourage Suleiman to maintain the government’s policy of distancing itself from the Syrian crisis.