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Maronite Summit in Bkirki to Discuss Impact of Regional Situation

Lebanon’s top Maronite leaders are expected to discuss the repercussions of the region’s upheaval on Lebanon in a meeting scheduled to be held in Bkirki on Friday, An Nahar daily reported Tuesday.

According to the newspaper, the dangerous situation in southern Lebanon would be at the top of issues to be discussed by Phalange leader Amin Gemayel, Free Patriotic Movement chief Michel Aoun, Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea and Marada movement’s head Suleiman Franjieh.

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Israel: Rocket was Aimed at Kiryat Shmona, Hizbullah Playing with Fire

Israeli security sources on Monday noted that the trajectory of the rocket fired overnight from the southern town of Majdal Selem into the nearby town of Houla “indicates that it was aimed at the (northern Israeli) town of Kiryat Shmona,” warning that “Hizbullah’s continuous playing with fire may lead to a security deterioration.”

Israel’s public radio quoted the sources as saying that the incident was part of a spate of attacks “in which the Hizbullah organization has a hand, including the firing of rockets into the western Galilee two weeks ago and the targeting of the members of the French UNIFIL unit in the Tyre region last weekend.”

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Hizbullah Slams French Accusations Linking Party to UNIFIL Attack

Hizbullah on Monday slammed as a “condemned behavior” accusations by French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe who claimed Sunday that the party had a hand in the latest attack on French U.N. peacekeepers in southern Lebanon.

“Juppe made blatant accusations against Syria and Hizbullah and he himself acknowledged that he had no proof to substantiate his allegations,” Hizbullah said in a statement.

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Asarta Says UNIFIL Won't Tolerate Acts Aimed at Destabilizing South

The commander of U.N. troops stationed in southern Lebanon on Monday condemned an overnight attack in which a rocket apparently fired towards Israel landed in Lebanese territory, injuring a woman.

"This is the third incident involving serious security breaches south of the Litani river in a period of two weeks," UNIFIL Force Commander Major-General Alberto Asarta Cuevas said in a statement.

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Fillon on UNIFIL Attack: Cowardice Won't Shake Our Determination

French Prime Minister Francois Fillon on Monday paid homage to the French U.N. peacekeepers who were wounded in a bombing last week against their patrol in southern Lebanon, saying the attack would not dampen France's commitment to the mission in Lebanon.

Speaking at a military base in the northeastern French town of Saint Dizier, Fillon said: "I want to send a thought to the five French UNIFIL peacekeepers who were injured Friday in the south of Lebanon, in an attack whose cowardice will not shake our determination."

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Jumblat: Dangerous Rockets Message May Be Addressed to France

Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat said Monday that the recent firing of rockets from Lebanon against Israel “may be a message addressed from our neighbors to France,” hours after the French foreign minister accused Syria of involvement in Friday’s bomb attack on French peacekeepers in southern Lebanon.

At a ceremony to honor PSP veterans in al-Mukhtara, Jumblat said: “We received yesterday the message of the rockets, and this is a dangerous message which may be addressed from our neighbors to France, via the Lebanese territory and at the expense of Lebanon’s stability, the South and entire Lebanon.”

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Syria Denies Involvement in French U.N. Peacekeepers Bombing

Syria on Monday denied involvement in a bombing that wounded five French U.N. peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, a day after France said Damascus was probably behind the attack.

"Syria has no link whatsoever with this act which we condemn," foreign ministry spokesman Jihad Makdisi said in a statement that also criticized French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe for pointing a finger at Damascus.

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Bassil Meets Nasrallah, Hints Aoun’s Bloc May Boycott Cabinet Session

Energy Minister Jebran Bassil did not deny on Sunday that he had met with Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on Thursday, reported al-Liwaa newspaper on Monday.

The meeting took place shortly after cabinet rejected Labor Minister Charbel Nahhas’ proposal over the wage hike.

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Strikes to be Staged across Lebanon as Miqati Fails to Reach Deal on Wage Hike

Head of General Labor Confederation Ghassan Ghosn said on Monday that the confederation will stage a strike across Lebanon on December 27 to protest the cabinet wage hike.

According to Voice of Lebanon radio (93.3), Ghosn stressed after a meeting for the executive council that the GLC supports the strike set by the Syndicate Coordination Committee on Thursday but won’t participate.

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Cabinet Set to Hold Intensified Meetings to Tackle Several Pending Issues

The cabinet is expected to witness heated debates this week as it is set to hold intensified meetings with several articles on its agenda.

Monday’s session will tackle the new electoral law draft, al-Joumhouria newspaper reported.

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