French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius announced Tuesday that other European countries would deploy ground troops to the violence-hit Central African Republic, without identifying them.

"We will soon have troops on the ground provided by our European colleagues," he told the lower house National Assembly, days after he decided to seek help from Europe in its former colony, where France has deployed a 1,600-strong force to quell deadly sectarian violence.

France on Monday called for calm and restraint on the frontier between Lebanon and Israel after an Israeli soldier was killed Sunday in a cross-border shooting.

In a statement, the French foreign ministry urged “calm and restraint” and stressed the need to “respect and implement (U.N.) Security Council Resolution 1701” which ended the 2006 war between Israel and Hizbullah and beefed up the presence of U.N. peacekeepers.

France voiced concern on Monday over the firing of three ministers in the Central African Republic's transitional government, saying the move risks causing more instability in the strife-torn country.

President Francois Hollande meanwhile said France's decision to deploy 1,600 troops in its chaotic former colony was aimed at stopping "crimes against humanity".

A panel set up at the request of President Francois Hollande on Monday recommended legalizing assisted suicide in France, where the debate on euthanasia has been revived after several tragic end-of-life stories.

The suicides of two elderly couples in November and the heart wrenching testimony of a politician who watched her terminally-ill mother die after taking pills have shocked and moved France, where euthanasia is illegal.

Turkey on Monday signed a long-awaited deal with the European Union to repatriate those who enter the bloc illegally from its territory, in exchange for talks on visa-free travel for its citizens.

The EU has committed to ensuring visa-free travel for Turkish citizens in 2017 at the earliest in return for Turkey signing the agreement.

Speaker Nabih Berri ruled out on Monday reports saying that there is a dispute between him and President Michel Suleiman, describing the relations as “normal.”

“History repeats itself as the situation we're witnessing today is similar to the one we lived in 2007 with some simple differences,” Berri told local newspapers.

A bomb threat that forced the evacuation of an Air France jet in Caracas was a false alarm, Venezuelan authorities said Sunday.

Air France flight 385 was scheduled to take off for Paris at 2355 GMT Saturday night but was abruptly cancelled after French security services warned there might be a bomb on board.

France's foreign minister will ask his European counterparts Monday for more help in the Central African Republic, where a French-backed military force is trying to quell deadly sectarian violence.

"Tomorrow I will go to the Foreign Affairs Council (in Brussels) and I will ask that there be more solid, stronger support," Laurent Fabius said Sunday on Europe 1 radio.

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius confirmed Sunday that 19 armed Islamists had been killed in a French-led military operation this week targeting Al-Qaida-linked rebels in restive northern Mali.

"There were 19 killed," Fabius said on Europe 1 radio.

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said Saturday that the moderate opposition to the Syrian regime is in "serious difficulty" and that long-delayed peace talks aimed at ending the crisis are in trouble.

"On Syria, I'm unfortunately rather pessimistic," Fabius said.