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Israel Puts Embassies on High Alert on Mughniyeh Murder Anniversary

Israel has put its embassies on high alert, fearing they could come under attack, after identifying suspicious activities around some of them, Israel's foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

"Unusual occurrences have been identified recently around a few Israeli missions abroad. Our assessment, at this point, is that these sites are under threat, and this is being taken care of," it said in a statement.

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Barak from Lebanon Border: Israeli Army May Return to Lebanon in the Future

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Tuesday that the Israeli army may be called into Lebanon in the future, reported Haaretz on Tuesday.

He made his statements during his first military tour with new the new Israeli army Chief of Staff Major General Benny Gantz along Israel’s northern border.

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Jumblat Preparing a “Clear, Sarcastic, and Decisive” Statement in Response to February 14 Speeches

Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat is expected to issue a “clear, sarcastic, and decisive” statement in response to everything that was said about him since the start of the parliamentary consultations and to the speeches that were delivered during Monday’s ceremony commemorating the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, reported Al-Akhbar on Tuesday.

He also addressed in his weekly editorial in the PSP-affiliated al-Anbaa magazine the recent revolt in Egypt, saying: “The Egyptian people are heading towards freedom after long years of tyranny under the previous regime.”

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Spain Adopts Wait-and-See Approach On Cabinet Decisions

The Spanish ambassador, Juan Carlos Gavo, reiterated on Tuesday that the Lebanese government should include all political parties and respect Security Council resolutions.

Following talks with Phalange party leader Amin Gemayel, Gavo said: “I reiterated to Gemayel our stance from the formation of the cabinet, which should represent all political parties.”

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Bassil Says March 14 was Transformed into a ‘Subversive Opposition’

Caretaker Energy Minister Jebran Bassil slammed what he called the “subversive opposition” of the March 14 forces, accusing them of committing “national treason.”

Bassil said speeches made by March 14 officials during ex-Premier Rafik Hariri’s sixth assassination anniversary in BIEL on Monday were a sign that the coalition was putting conditions that contradict with March 8 stances.

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Ashton in Beirut on Wednesday to Inquire About Lebanon’s Commitment to Tribunal

The European Union's top diplomat Catherine Ashton will visit Lebanon on Wednesday as part of a broader Middle East trip, a source at Lebanon's foreign ministry told German Press Agency dpa.

She is due to meet with President Michel Suleiman, Speaker Nabih Berri, outgoing Prime Minister Saad Hariri, Premier-designate Najib Miqati and Caretaker Minister Ali al-Shami during her four-hour visit.

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Seven Men, Including 2 Lebanese, Charged in NY with Conspiring to Aid Taliban

Seven men, including two Lebanese citizens, were charged with selling drugs and weapons in an effort to help the Taliban fight U.S. troops overseas.

Posing as representatives of the Taliban, cooperating witnesses for the Drug Enforcement Administration approached the men in Ghana last June, asking to set up a drug relationship, prosecutors said. First, the cooperators asked if they could buy large amounts of cocaine, according to court documents. Then, they asked if the men could set up safe places in West Africa to store heroin on its way from Afghanistan to the United States, Canada and Europe.

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No Cabinet this Week as Miqati Sees Positive Signs in March 14 Speeches

Premier-designate Najib Miqati’s circles said speeches made on ex-Premier Rafik Hariri’s sixth assassination anniversary had some positive signs that are “consistent with Miqati’s approach.”

The circles told An Nahar daily in remarks published Tuesday that the speeches of Caretaker Premier Saad Hariri, Phalange party leader Amin Gemayel, Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea and former minister Mohammed Abdul Hamid Baidoun at the BIEL rally were consistent with Miqati’s “conviction on the need for dialogue and moderation.”

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Clinton Accuses Hizbullah of ‘Hijacking’ Democracy

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton accused Hizbullah of hijacking Lebanon’s democracy and stressed that only the Lebanese state should have monopoly on military power.

“There are many ways that a democracy can be hijacked,” Clinton told al-Arabiya Arab TV network in an interview aired Monday.

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U.N. Chief Reiterates Support for STL on Hariri Murder Anniversary

U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon reiterated Monday his support for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon and the Lebanese people, on the sixth anniversary of the assassination of former premier Rafik Hariri.

"As Lebanon marks the sixth anniversary of the terrorist attack that took the lives of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and 22 others, the Secretary-General stands with the people of Lebanon in commemorating the life and achievements of Mr. Hariri and renews his condolences to the families of the victims of this crime," the U.N. chief said.

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