Contacts are ongoing between the government and the Hizbullah leadership in order to contain the tensions on the street in light of the demonstrations staged in protest against the murder of soldier Abbas Medlej at the hands of his Islamist captors over the weekend, reported As Safir newspaper on Monday.

Resolving the case of the captive soldiers and policemen will likely “take some time”, said Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq.

Prime Minister Tammam Salam announced on Sunday that Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani has been exerting efforts to help free the abducted Lebanese soldiers, stressing that negotiations with “blood” will not make the government surrender.

“Anger is immense but we should know that sedition, which terrorists seek, could be taken advantage of by ignorant individuals and weak souls. It is the entrance to ruin our national peace,” said Salam in a speech addressing the Lebanese.

Controversy loomed on Sunday whether a Qatari delegation negotiating the release of abducted security forces' members was commissioned by the Lebanese government or not.

Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq had denied a prior knowledge of the presence of a Qatari delegation in Lebanon to mediate the release of the kidnapped soldiers and policemen, who were taken hostage by Islamist gunmen while withdrawing from the northeastern border town of Arsal in August.

Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq described as “excellent” the meeting of the ministerial panel tasked with following up on the case of soldiers and policemen abducted by Islamist militants from the northeastern border town of Arsal, reported the daily An Nahar on Friday.

The minister is scheduled to travel to Qatar on Monday in order to follow up on the issue.

Egypt's deposed President Mohamed Morsi will be tried on charges of giving Qatar documents relating to national security, the state prosecutor said on Saturday.

The Islamist former head of state already faces the death penalty in several trials, and his supporters have been the target of a deadly crackdown by the authorities since his ouster in July 2013.

The municipal chief of the northeastern border town of Arsal questioned the delay in the release of the soldiers and policemen held captive by Islamist militants, reported al-Liwaa newspaper on Saturday.

Ali al-Hujairi told the daily that a Syrian mediator, not a Qatari one, was leading the negotiations on the release of the abductees.

A ministerial panel following up on the case of the abducted troops convened on Friday amid a boycott by the hostages' families, as the Islamic State group accused Qatari mediators of maneuvering and “obstructing the negotiations” before eventually meeting with them.

“Prime Minister (Tammam) Salam expressed his relief over the political consensus that was demonstrated during the (Thursday) cabinet session regarding the principles that must govern the issue,” Defense Minister Samir Moqbel told reporters after the meeting.

Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq will tackle the case of the abducted Lebanese soldiers and policemen, who were taken hostage by Islamist gunmen in the northeastern border town of Arsal, with Gulf senior officials.

According to As Safir newspaper on Friday, General Security chief Maj. Gen. Abbas Ibrahim will accompany Mashnouq to the Qatari capital Doha during the weekend.

Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq has been invited to the Gulf Cooperation Council's interior ministers' meeting scheduled to be held in Doha next week, al-Akhbar newspaper reported on Tuesday.

Al-Mashnouq will be the “guest of honor” in the meeting that would also be attended by five cabinet ministers from the GCC countries, the daily said.

Gulf Arab monarchies said Saturday they were ready to help counter advances by jihadists in Syria and Iraq, after the U.S. called for a global coalition to fight the militants.

But the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council said it was awaiting details from Washington and a visit to the region by U.S. Secretary of State Department John Kerry to discuss anti-jihadist cooperation.