The growing American and western role in Lebanon is thriving recently in a bid to confront the Iranian role that has been exacerbating lately in the country, a well-informed diplomatic source told As Safir on Friday.

“There is a western and American role that has been increasing lately in Lebanon in an attempt to counter the growing Iranian role,” the source told the daily on condition of anonymity.

Sources close to the State Commissioner to the Military Court Judge Saqr Saqr stressed on Thursday that the judge will not let any pressure to control the path of investigations that he is leading with regard to the illegal internet stations and the latest incidents that took place at the Zaarour station.

Hundreds of Lebanese companies and personalities are involved in the scandal of the so-called Panama Papers document leak, al-Liwaa daily reported on Thursday.

The newspaper said the Lebanese entities and individuals mentioned in the documents in the "Panama Papers" leak are 468 companies, 30 customers, 131 beneficiaries and 624 shareholders.

The Internal Security Forces said on Thursday that it has arrested four Australians suspected of involvement in the kidnapping of two siblings south of Beirut a day earlier after the Foreign Ministry in Canberra claimed the detainees were an Australian television crew.

The ISF said the four Australians were arrested by the Intelligence Branch on suspicion of involvement in the abduction of Lahala al-Amine, 6, and her four-year-old brother Nouh in Hadath.

Hizbullah strongly condemned Wednesday a decision by a leading Arab satellite operator to cut transmission of its al-Manar television channel, amid rising tensions between the Iran-backed Lebanese group and Saudi Arabia.

“Hizbullah sees a blatant violation of freedom of opinion and freedom of expression in the unjust decision that was taken by the Egyptian Satellite Company (NileSat),” the party said in a statement.

Head of the parliamentary media committee MP Hassan Fadlallah called on the judicial authorities to shoulder the responsibility with regard to the illegal internet network file away from political interference.

Following the committee's meeting held in the presence of Ministers of Defense Samir Moqbel and Telecommunications Butros Harb, Fadlallah said: “There are no answers so far on how the stations and the equipment were installed.”

Progressive Socialist Party chief MP Walid Jumblat said on Tuesday that several heated files in Lebanon are marred with corruption, firing accusations against officials without naming them in covering a prostitution ring that was unveiled last week.

He said that the sex slavery ring unveiled has been in business for many years and in complicity with senior officials at the Vice Squad.

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development has said that Lebanon is among the countries that are refusing to “exchange information” after tax evasion probes were launched following a massive leak of confidential documents that lifted the lid on the murky offshore financial dealings of a slew of politicians and celebrities.

The scandal erupted on Sunday when media groups began revealing the results of a year-long investigation into a trove of 11.5 million documents from the Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca, which specializes in creating offshore shell companies.

Hizbullah fighters launched an attack against an Islamic State position in the outskirts of Ras Baalbek, killing and wounding several, al-Manar TV reported on Monday.

The attack was launched against a position in the al-Zwaytini where Hizbullah was able to destroy the militants' fortifications.

Head of the Change and Reform bloc MP Michel Aoun said on Monday that the way in which the international community and the United Nations are addressing the Syrian refugees issue in Lebanon “is dubious” and raises fears of hidden intentions to naturalize them.

“The international community and the United Nations are addressing the issue of displaced Syrians in a dubious and suspicious manner. It makes us believe that there are intentions to impose naturalization on us as a fait accompli,” Aoun told As Safir daily.