A warning made by French President Nicolas Sarkozy earlier in the month that Paris would consider pulling its troops from the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon if it comes under attack again, is not the first, an official told An Nahar daily Saturday.

In a letter sent to his Lebanese counterpart President Michel Suleiman and PM Najib Miqati, Sarkozy said: “If the July 26, 2011 attack takes place again then France would wonder whether there is any reason to keep its troops to confront the dangers that the host country is not dealing with appropriately.”

United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon spokesman Neeraj Singh denied on Friday that the international forces had received any information on a letter French President Nicolas Sarkozy had sent to President Michel Suleiman hinting that France is reconsidering its participation in the international force.

He told Akhbar al-Yawm news agency that the international force was not informed of any possible French withdrawal.

A controversial electricity draft law will be on the cabinet’s agenda next week after the government once again failed to agree on how the allocation of $1.2 billion to raise electricity production by 700 megawatts would be made.

The dispute over the draft law has led to divisions in the ranks of the government, after ministers representing Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun threatened to resign if the cabinet failed to approve the proposal.

President Michel Suleiman said on Friday stability in Lebanon is guaranteed, noting that the Special Tribunal for Lebanon indictment might create some tension on the ground.

“The stability in the country is guaranteed, we have foreign assurances regarding this matter,” Suleiman’s visitors told al-Joumhouria.

Al-Mustaqbal movement has urged supporters to gather at ex-Premier Rafik Hariri’s graveside in downtown Beirut after Friday prayers.

The movement’s sources told As Safir daily that al-Mustaqbal “has never said it was convinced about killer sects and killed confessions.”

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas stressed Tuesday that “the Palestinians are under the Lebanese law and we don’t need all the weapons, as we are under the protection of the Lebanese people, president, government and parliament.”

Abbas arrived Tuesday in Beirut for a 2-day visit during which he will hold talks with top Lebanese officials, inspect the living conditions of Palestinian refugees and seek Lebanon’s support for the Palestinian bid for U.N. membership.

Lebanese politicians seem to be heading towards a new showdown over the issue of proportional representation in the 2013 parliamentary elections after Druze leader Walid Jumblat called for keeping the current electoral system.

During an Iftar held in the Shouf over the weekend, Jumblat said: “It would be better to postpone discussions of proportionality and keep the status quo to preserve diversity and plurality.”

President Michel Suleiman is scheduled to travel to Monaco on Thursday on a four-day official visit, al-Liwaa daily reported.

The newspaper also said that Suleiman held separate talks with Hizbullah MP Mohammed Raad and Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea after the Iftar banquet he threw in honor of politicians and clergymen last Thursday.

Hizbullah deputy leader Sheikh Naim Qassem has advised some Lebanese parties to put Lebanon’s interest before any other interest and work to solve the daily problems of the people rather than betting on the Shiite party’s downfall.

In an interview with As Safir daily published Monday, Qassem said: “Lebanon’s interest should be put before other personal interests and before the logic of farms and different foreign guardianships.”

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who visits Beirut on Tuesday, is expecting that the Palestinian bid for United Nations recognition will receive a boost from Lebanon's taking over the presidency of the U.N. Security Council.

In an interview with al-Liwaa daily published Monday, Abbas hoped that Lebanon would play an effective role in his bid for U.N. membership on September 20, despite Israeli opposition.