The relatives of soldier Abdullah Ahmed Shehade, who reportedly defected the Lebanese army and joined the ranks of al-Nusra Front, appealed for him to return to his family and the military institution.

“The military institution is the sole guarantee for the country's security,” the family said in press conference on Saturday in from the town of Mashha in the northern district of Akkar.

Kataeb Party leader Amin Gemayel lashed out on Saturday at the Free Patriotic Movement and Hizbullah, accusing them of having interests to impede the election of a new head of state.

“Whoever wants to run for the presidency has the right... If the candidate didn't have enough support at the parliament then he withdraws,” Gemayel said in an interview with An Nahar newspaper.

Calm prevailed on Saturday after several rockets from Syrian territories targeted overnight the al-Kabir River, which separates Syria and Lebanon, and nearby towns.

The shelling targeted the town of Omar al-Beykat, Qashlaq and the outskirts of Hekr Jenine in the northern Akkar district, the state-run National News Agency reported on Saturday.

International and regional countries are “gravely concerned” of attempts by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) to create a safe passage to the sea in northern Lebanon.

According to As Safir newspaper published on Saturday, Arab and Western countries voiced concern, during security meetings held in various regional countries, on an ISIL scheme to take control of a swath of territory in Lebanon in order to reach the sea.

Speaker Nabih Berri expressed concern on Saturday over the ongoing attempts by terrorists to overrun towns in the Eastern Mountain Range and to cause chaos in the northern port city of Tripoli.

“If the Lebanese remain united, then they (terrorists) will not be able to achieve much,” Berri said in comments published in al-Akhbar newspaper.

Social Affairs Minister Rashid Derbas will kick off on Saturday a tour on Arab countries to tackle the ongoing Syrian refugee crisis with senior officials.

According to al-Mustaqbal newspaper, Derbas will travel to Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt.

Justice Minister Ashraf Rifi on Friday announced that he has decided to expand a probe into the mysterious death of toddler girl Celine Rakan, amid reports that the investigation was not thorough and that the Ethiopian maid was suddenly accused of murdering the child.

The minister said he discussed the issue with State Prosecutor Samir Hammoud and they agreed to refer the case to the judicial department for further investigations.

Another Lebanese soldier has defected to al-Nusra Front, media reports said on Friday evening, only hours after the group published a video in which the soldier Mohammed Antar announced that he had "joined the jihadists."

"The soldier Abdullah Ahmed Shehadeh, who hails from the Akkar town of Mashha, has defected to al-Nusra Front," al-Jadeed TV reported, noting that he was a member of the Fifth Intervention Regiment.

The army carried out several raids on Friday in Akkar towns, after the murder of soldier Milad Mohammed Issa in al-Rihaniyeh.

“Army troops patrolled and closed roads for search and inspection in al-Dreib on the highway of Halba-Qobaiyat,” announced the National News Agency.

Hizbullah on Friday announced that the latest battles in Brital's outskirts were aimed at “creating an emirate” on the border of the Bekaa, claiming advances in the mountains of Syria's Qalamun region in the face of “takfiri” groups.

“Lebanon has fended off the threats of the Syrian crisis through the wisdom of its rational men, the Lebanese army's resilience and steadfastness, and the performance of Hizbullah and its allies,” Hizbullah deputy chief Sheikh Naim Qassem announced during a memorial service.