Prime Minister Najib Miqati rejected on Friday divisions inside the Sunni sect, saying the Higher Islamic Council elections should be held based on rules and regulations.

“We won't allow for divisions,” Miqati told clergymen in the northern city of Tripoli, expressing “keenness” on the Sunni community and the Dar al-Fatwa leadership.

Israel has urged the U.N. Security Council to condemn Hizbullah for allegedly building its arsenal to unprecedented levels, saying the party now possessed 50,000 missiles capable of hitting Israel.

Israel's U.N. Ambassador Ron Prosor said in a letter to the 15-nation council on Thursday that the buildup was in clear violation of Resolution 1701.

Canada added Iran's Quds Force to a list of terrorist groups on Thursday, saying the elite special operations unit of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard had been arming the Taliban, Hizbullah, Hamas and others.

Public Safety Minister Vic Toews said the Quds Force was responsible for "exporting the Iranian Revolution through activities such as facilitating terrorist operations."

Prime Minister Najib Miqati appeased fears on Friday on the possible closure of the Lebanese-Syrian border after several ministers said Lebanon should stop receiving refugees fleeing the turmoil in Syria.

In a statement to religious personalities in the northern city of Tripoli and in remarks published in As Safir daily, Miqati said: “It is impossible for us to close our border with Syria as we have historic ties with it.”

President Michel Suleiman is expected to postpone again a national dialogue session set to be held in January to pave way for further efforts to bridge the differences between the March 8 majority coalition and the March 14 opposition, al-Liwaa daily reported on Friday.

The newspaper quoted informed sources as saying that Suleiman could postpone the all-party talks to early February after a similar postponement was made to January 7.

The European Union announced on Thursday granting Lebanon 22 million euros in support of democratic reform and stability programs in the country.

The EU Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighborhood Policy Stefan Fule said the grant conforms with the European mission to “deepen democracy and enhance social inclusiveness and stability in the country”.

General Prosecutor Judge Hatem Madi received on Thursday the FBI report on the assassination of Internal Security Forces Intelligence Bureau chief Brigadier General Wissam al-Hasan, various media outlets reported.

Hasan was killed in a massive car bomb in Beirut's Ashrafiyeh district on October 19.

Loyalty to the Resistance bloc MP Nawwaf al-Moussawi slammed on Thursday claims by defected Syrian cleric Abdul Jalil Saeed that Syria was planning on assassinating Mufti of Tripoli and the North Sheikh Malek al-Shaar.

He said: “The claims are lies and baseless.”

The Free Syrian Army succeeded on Thursday in seizing control for the first time of a border-crossing with Lebanon.

The army took control of the crossing that ties the Syrian town of Rankous to the Lebanese town of Tfeil, which lies in Syrian territory.

President Michel Suleiman congratulated on Thursday the newly-appointed members of the Petroleum Authority and urged for unity in their work plan.

Energy Minister Jebran Bassil and the authority's six members visited Suleiman in Baabda palace to brief him on their work on decrees that regulate the stage of issuing tenders for oil exploration.