Cabinet criticized on Wednesday the Electricite du Liban contract employees’ recent protests, saying that they have violated the principles of peaceful demonstrations.

Information Minister Walid al-Daouq said: “Anyone who will deign to violate the law will be arrested.”

The Army Intelligence Directorate in the area of Jezzine in southern Lebanon has summoned some youths in the region for investigation over information and friends listed on their Facebook profiles, An Nahar daily said Wednesday.

The investigation did not spare well-educated people, with respected jobs including a professor at a private university, employees in the private and public sectors, and an employee bank, reported the daily.

The Maronite bishops council urged on Wednesday officials to set Lebanon’s interests as a priority above all else, “completely rejecting” attempts to drag the country towards “a new war through fueling sectarian tensions.”

It said in a statement after its monthly meeting: “Officials must comply with President Michel Suleiman’s call to resume the national dialogue without preconditions.”

Two Islamists, who have escaped the southern Palestinian refugee camp of Ain el-Hilweh, were arrested by Syrian security forces in Hama, al-Akhbar daily reported on Wednesday.

The newspaper said that Palestinian officials have received unconfirmed information about the arrest of the two Islamists who were reportedly among at least seven extremists who escaped the camp.

Electricite du Liban's contract employees stormed on Wednesday the company’s headquarters in Beirut by breaking the building’s main gate after the Internal Security Forces prevented them from entering the premises.

The angry protesters escalated their strike demanding the cabinet to approve their full-time employment.

The context of the letter that Syria’s envoy to the United Nations Bashar al-Jaafari submitted is exaggerated and contains false information as individuals are behind the arms smuggling operations and not “terrorist organizations,” An Nahar newspaper reported on Wednesday.

“Jaafari’s letter includes false information and is exaggerating the issue,” judicial sources told the daily.

Turkish authorities have informed Speaker Nabih Berri, Premier Najib Miqati and Hizbullah that Ankara will exert every effort to resolve the case of 11 Shiite pilgrims, who were kidnapped in Syria last week.

The information was relayed to the officials by Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu through ambassador to Lebanon Inan Ozyildiz on Tuesday.

U.N.-Arab League Joint Special Envoy for Syria Kofi Annan on Tuesday announced that he will visit Lebanon soon.

Al-Manar television reported the news, without elaborating.

Finance Minister Mohammed Safadi on Tuesday said the cabinet will discuss Wednesday a new extra-budgetary spending bill, noting that “the 4,900 billion was slashed to 3,500 billion, including the public sector wages.”

Speaking during Tuesday’s cabinet session, Safadi added that a political decision has been taken to approve the budget, but noted that the obstacle still hindering the plan was the need to audit extra-budgetary spending made between 2006 and 2010 by the governments of Fouad Saniora and Saad Hariri.

The Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc praised on Tuesday President Michel Suleiman’s call for the resumption of the national dialogue, noting that it is a proper way to tackle pending disputes.

It noted however after its weekly meeting: “Limiting the possession of arms to the state and forming an unbiased government are the basis for resuming the dialogue.”