The Syrian government has set three conditions to engage in a prisoners swap with the Islamic State group and al-Qaida-affiliate al-Nusra Front to guarantee the safe release of the abducted Lebanese soldiers and policemen.

Al-Liwaa newspaper reported on Tuesday that the Syrian government demanded its Lebanese counterpart to “officially appeal for help” to facilitate the release of the names enlisted by the two Islamist groups.

Progressive Socialist Party chief Walid Jumblat reiterated that not all those who rebelled against the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad are terrorists.

“The Syrian people chose to revolt against Syrian President Bashar Assad. They wanted to get rid of his tyranny and crimes,” Jumblat, who is also a lawmaker, told al-Mustaqbal newspaper on Tuesday.

Several terrorist detainees have confessed to a plot by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant to stage a ground offensive and control several regions in northern Lebanon to announce the establishment of the Islamic State in Lebanon.

A high-ranking military source told al-Joumhouria newspaper published on Tuesday that Imad Jomaa, Ahmed Miqati and several other detainees admitted that the ground offensive aimed at opening a corridor to the sea across northern Lebanon by connecting Arsal with Hermel, Dinniyeh, Akkar and ultimately the coastal city of Tripoli.

Social Affairs Minister Rashid Derbas said the number of Syrians seeking refuge in Lebanon has been dropping although a decision on not to accept more refugees hasn't been fully implemented yet.

The UNHCR reports show that the number of refugees in Lebanon began to decline, Derbas told An Nahar newspaper in remarks published on Tuesday.

Prime Minister Tammam Salam is expected to travel to the United Arab Emirates on Monday to continue a tour he kicked off recently to Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries.

A ministerial source described in comments published in al-Liwaa newspaper on Tuesday the ties between Lebanon and UAE as “strong.”

Families of U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq and soldiers wounded there in attacks allegedly linked to Iran and Hizbullah sued five European banks Monday, claiming their business with Iran helped finance the attacks.

HSBC, Credit Suisse, Standard Chartered, Royal Bank of Scotland, and Barclays Bank were sued in the federal district court in Brooklyn, New York, over their already admitted banking business with Iran in violation of U.S. sanctions.

The army on Monday dismantled a bomb that was placed in a van with the aim of “assassinating” its owner, state-run National News Agency reported.

“The Lebanese army defused an explosive device weighing two kilograms that was planted in a passenger van owned by Ahmed Ezzeddine, who hails from the (Bekaa border) town of Arsal,” NNA said.

A grandfather has tried to smuggle a quantity of hashish to his jailed grandson, in the latest unusual attempt to breach prison security.

The 78-year-old man, identified as Sh. B., was arrested by police guards at the Zahle prison, an Internal Security Forces statement said.

The Kataeb Party on Monday called on lawmakers to elect a president as soon as possible, describing the protracted presidential void and the extension of parliament's term last week as an attempt to “maintain political vacuum at all levels.”

“What's dangerous is that everyone is being asked to surrender in the face of obstruction, which is growing in a manner that threatens to abolish democracy completely,” the party said in a statement issued after the weekly meeting of its political bureau.

Speaker Nabih Berri stressed on Monday that parliament will always be ready to hold the presidential elections should an agreement be reached on a compromise candidate, reported the National News Agency.

“The local and regional conditions may lead to promising signals that may encourage parties to agree on a new president,” said Berri according to his visitor, head of Maronite General Council Wadih el-Khazen.