Defense Minister Fayez Ghosn on Tuesday warned that al-Qaida members have entered the country through the Bekaa border town of Arsal “under the guise of being members of the Syrian opposition,” noting that he will raise the issue in cabinet.

During a meeting at his office with a delegation of high-ranking Lebanese army officers, Ghosn said: “We have information that certain operations are taking place at some illegal border crossings, especially in Arsal, where weapons and some al-Qaida terrorist elements are entering (the country) under the guise of being members of the Syrian opposition.”

The Mustaqbal bloc condemned on Tuesday the recent clashes that erupted in Beirut, saying that the security incidents are a reminder to the Lebanese people of the dangerousness of the ongoing presence of armed groups in the capital.

It said in a statement after its weekly meeting: “These incidents were met with a lax approach by the security forces, which is a sign of the state’s waning power over the country.”

Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun hoped on Tuesday that political parties would grant the Orthodox gathering proposals over the parliamentary electoral an opportunity because its suggestions could probably be adopted in the 2013 parliamentary elections.

He said after the Change and Reform bloc’s weekly meeting: “We are experiencing the reasons that prompted the gathering to make its proposals in the first place.”

The director for United Nations and international organizations in the French Foreign Ministry Nicolas de Riviere renewed on Tuesday France’s support to Lebanon and its commitment to maintaining the stability and security of the South.

The French Embassy said in a statement: “De Riviere informed Lebanese officials during his trip to Lebanon that France will remain part of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon in order to preserve the stability of Lebanon and the region.”

A gunfight erupted between the Internal Security Forces and Qobbeh residents in the northern port city of Tripoli on Tuesday after a dispute over efforts to curb illegal construction.

Voice of Lebanon radio station (93.3) said that Qobbeh residents in the area of al-Bqar held a sit-in against attempts by the ISF to end the construction of illegal buildings.

Security forces found on Tuesday the body of the American, John Redwine, in the Zahta area in Sannine after he was reported missing on Monday, reported the National News Agency.

Redwine frequently carried out mountain-climbing trips in the area.

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi and Iranian Ambassador Ghazanfar Roknabadi discussed the preparations for the inter-religious dialogue that is scheduled to be held next month.

My “visit was aimed at discussing the Christian-Islamic dialogue conference that will be held on January 17, 2012 with the participation of delegations from the different countries in the Middle East and North Africa,” Roknabadi said after meeting al-Rahi in Bkirki.

U.N. Special Coordinator for Lebanon ad interim Robert Watkins welcomed on Tuesday Lebanon’s continuing commitment to U.N. Security Council resolution 1701.

He said after holding talks with Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour: “Lebanon and Israel should be doing more to ensure that the remaining requirements of the resolution are met.”

Interior Minister Marwan Charbel stressed on Tuesday that not all the Lebanese factions would approve the Maronite leaders’ decision to back a proposal by the Orthodox Gathering to allow each sect to choose its own representatives during the 2013 parliamentary elections.

In remarks to Voice of Lebanon radio station (93.3), Charbel said that his proposed draft law on proportional representation should be discussed because it has come based on a recommendation from the cabinet and its ministerial statement.

A Maronite delegation has told Free Patriotic Movement chief Michel Aoun that President Michel Suleiman should have a say in the appointments of civil servants in posts reserved for Christians, An Nahar daily reported Tuesday.

The newspaper said that former Ministers Michel Edde and Wadih Khazen, and Joseph Tarabay were delegated by Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi to resolve the issue of appointments.