The Maronite Patriarch vowed Wednesday to help the displaced Christians of a village in northern Israel, as he pushed forward with a controversial trip to the Jewish state.

In 1948, six months after Israel was established, the army asked Iqrit and Kufr Bir'im's residents to leave their homes for two weeks because of military operations in the area.

The March 14 General Secretariat slammed on Thursday Hizbullah chief sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, calling on the party to prioritize the higher interest of Lebanon.

“Nasrallah's speech focused on delusional victories in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon.... to secure some presidential and parliamentary interests,” the March 14 said in a statement after its weekly meeting.

Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea accused on Wednesday the March 8 camp of obstructing quorum during the presidential polls, urging Speaker Nabih Berri to exert the sufficient pressure to persuade all lawmakers to attend elections sessions.

He said during a press conference at his Maarab residence: “We seek a president who won't conspire against the constitution.”

An Israeli infantry unit crossed on Wednesday the southern border gate near al-Ghajjar village, al-Jadeed television reported.

According to the channel, an army unit comprised of 25 troops crossed al-Ghajjar gate and deployed eastern the Hosn al-Wazzani resort.

Syrian warplanes staged four raids on Wednesday on the outskirts of the border town of Arsal in northern Bekaa, the state-run National News Agency reported.

The area of Wadi Hmeid was targeted for the second time in less than two days.

The Lebanese army said Wednesday it has seized weapons, ammunition and drugs from a building in a town in the north Metn area and arrested more than 12 suspects.

An army communique said the raid took place in Sabtieh on Tuesday night after the military received a tip-off about the suspicious activities carried out there.

Syrian expats streamed to their embassy in Yarze on Wednesday to vote in a controversial presidential election, contrary to Lebanese elections held usually on weekends, which triggered suffocating traffic congestion, jamming work bound Lebanese citizens in their cars.

By midday, all the entrances to Beirut were blocked, causing long tailbacks, as thousands of Syrians descended on the embassy, mostly by foot.

Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq has said that a security plan for Beirut is expected to witness light in June as another cabinet minister stressed that no party wants to create chaos.

Al-Mashnouq told Beirut MPs that the capital will see more security measures in the coming days to arrest wrongdoers, according to al-Liwaa newspaper published on Wednesday.

The cabinet will hold at the end of this week at the Grand Serail the first session in the absence of a head of state, however, the meeting is not expected to discuss any controversial issues.

“The session will discuss an uncontroversial agenda,” Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq told An Nahar newspaper published on Wednesday, ruling out that new appointments will be tackled at the session.

Former President Michel Suleiman has vowed to back the resistance if it asked for his support but on condition that it abides by a defense strategy for the country.

In remarks to As Safir daily published on Wednesday, he said: “When the resistance needs assistance, it will find President Suleiman as its supporter but within known conditions and the vision of the strategy.”