Tourism Minister Michel Pharaon rejected on Friday the criticism directed against Miss Lebanon, Saly Greige, in the wake of her “selfie” with Miss Israel that has created uproar in the country and over social media.

He said during a press conference: “Greige will not be punished for her actions and she will not be stripped of her title.”

Hizbullah denied on Thursday media reports about “changes in the rules of engagement with Israel” after last Sunday’s Quneitra raid which killed six members of the group, while also denying that its response will happen outside Lebanese territory.

“We deny the claims that were attributed to a so-called source who is close to the party about the situation in the region,” the party said in statement, dismissing a report by the Reuters news agency.

U.S. President Barack Obama will not meet Benjamin Netanyahu when the Israeli prime minister makes a controversial visit to the United States in early March, the White House said Thursday. 

National Security Council spokeswoman Bernadette Meehan said it was a "matter of long-standing practice and principle" that the president not meet candidates or incumbent leaders while they on the campaign trail.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday accepted an invitation to address the U.S. Congress about Iran and Islamic extremism.

Netanyahu's office said he had agreed to speak at a joint session of the Senate and House of Representatives in early March following an invitation by House Speaker John Boehner.

The government condemned on Thursday Israel's strike against Syria's Quneitra region, accusing the Jewish state of repeatedly violating international resolutions.

Information Minister Ramzi Jreij declared: “Confronting the strike must take place through respecting international resolutions.”

Head of al-Mustaqbal Movement MP Fouad al-Saniora warned on Thursday that Israel will not skip a chance to attack Lebanon, stressing that it is no longer acceptable to risk the lives of the Lebanese.

“It is no longer acceptable to risk the lives of the people to implement foreign agendas that don't meet the demands of the Lebanese and achieve their interests,” Saniora said in a statement.

U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon David Hale highlighted his country's concerns regarding the developments along the Lebanese border with Syria and Israel, warning of attempts to destabilize the situation in it.

Local newspapers published on Friday reported that Hale's meeting with Prime Minister Tammam Salam a day before was to convey his country's deep concerns over the developments along Lebanon's border with Syria and with Israel.

Progressive Socialist Party chief MP Walid Jumblat has expressed pessimism on the ability of rival parties to resolve the presidential deadlock through dialogue and accused Israel of drawing a demarcation line between the Jewish State and Iran.

According to As Safir daily published on Thursday, Jumblat said there was no positive development in the presidential crisis despite the talks between Hizbullah and al-Mustaqbal representatives.

Israeli forces went briefly on high alert near the border with Lebanon on Wednesday evening, closing roads and asking residents to stay indoors, following reports of a suspected infiltration by a number of militants.

“After sending troops to the area, the IDF (Israeli army) Spokesman announced no infiltration has occurred, but asked that residents remained in their homes,” the website of Israel's Yediot Ahronot newspaper reported.

Israeli conduct during last summer's war in the Gaza Strip increased the number of civilian casualties, an independent report has said, by failing to differentiate between military targets and civilian populations.

Despite claims to the contrary, the military did not give sufficient warning for civilians to evacuate residential areas before striking them, according to the report partly commissioned by Physicians for Human Rights and carried out by eight independent medical experts.