Tens of thousands of people rallied worldwide in solidarity with France on Sunday, with marchers across Europe and the Middle East chanting "Je suis Charlie" and holding pens in the air.

From Berlin to London and Jerusalem to Beirut, crowds waved French flags and sang the anthem La Marseillaise following the Islamist attacks that killed 17 people.

EU Ambassador to Lebanon Angelina Eichhorst has said that Lebanon “stands at crossroads,” warning that the country was suffering from the repercussions of the Syrian crisis.

“What I mean by crossroads is that you have foreign influences. All what's happening in the region is reflecting on Lebanon as a result of the crisis in Syria,” said Eichhorst.

A Moroccan man who admitted setting fire to a Shiite mosque in Brussels to protest the crackdown on fellow Sunnis in Syria was sentenced to 27 years in prison on Friday for the attack that killed the imam.

Rachid El-Boukhari, 35, had denied intending to kill the preacher at the main Shiite mosque in the Belgian capital.

European Union Ambassador to Lebanon Angelina Eichhorst expected on Friday positive talks between Prime Minister Tammam Salam and European officials next week, stressing that the Lebanese state has the right to manage the Syrian refugees crisis as it wills.

She described the visit as the “first-of-its-kind” as Salam will be the first PM to meet with the new EU representatives.

Prime Minister Tammam Salam is likely to hear during his visit to Brussels next week warnings from several European countries on the drop in assistance to Lebanon over the government’s decision not to accept more Syrian refugees.

An Nahar daily said Tuesday that Salam's talks with European Union officials during his visit to Brussels on Dec. 1 will focus on the refugee crisis.

Prime Minister Tammam Salam is planning to visit Brussels in December to discuss with European Union officials the burden of Syrian refugees, An Nahar daily reported on Friday.

Salam is mulling to discuss with the European officials promised assistance to Lebanon, which is hosting around 1.5 million Syrian refugees, said the newspaper.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has warned British Prime Minister David Cameron he is approaching a "point of no return" with the European Union over his immigration proposals, a report Sunday said.

News weekly Der Spiegel writes in its latest edition that Merkel told Cameron on the sidelines of an EU summit last month that his moves to limit an influx of EU migrant workers undermined core principles of the bloc.

The European Union's incoming boss Jean-Claude Juncker was under pressure Tuesday to reshuffle his new team after parliamentarians savaged several of his candidates in confirmation hearings.

Lawmakers in Brussels have raised doubts over key members of the European Commission, the EU's executive arm for the next five years, including the British, Spanish, Hungarian and Slovenian nominees.

The European Commission said Sunday it has not been told of any specific threat against it, after reports suggested its Brussels headquarters was a possible target for jihadist fighters returning from Syria.

Belgian authorities confirmed Saturday they had made several arrests as they sought to prevent jihadist fighters or sympathizers with the Islamic State extremist group from carrying out attacks.

U.S. President Barack Obama said Thursday that the United States would intensify sanctions in the defense, finance and energy sectors to punish Russia over its "illegal actions" in Ukraine, as the European Union said it could lift a new set of sanctions if a Ukraine ceasefire holds.

Obama said in a statement the move would worsen the Kremlin's deepening political and economic isolation.