Lebanese Forces MP Elie Keyrouz requested in a memo to Speaker Nabih Berri that his inquiry to the government over the abduction of Syrian opposition members in Lebanon be changed into a debriefing.

He said that this request stems from the abduction of the Syrians, who are then handed over to Syrian authorities “in a violation of humanitarian laws.”

U.S. President Barack Obama stressed to President Michel Suleiman that the United States stands by the Lebanese people in their pursuit for justice, while French President Nicolas Sarkozy emphasized the need for Lebanon to commit to its international obligations, especially the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.

Obama told Suleiman in a cable congratulating him on Lebanon’s Independence Day that the United States will continue its support for Lebanon’s independence and sovereignty, reported the National News Agency on Wednesday.

Israel’s Home Front Defense Minister Matan Vilnai announced on Tuesday that the Jewish state will properly handle a possible war with Hizbullah, adding that the party greatly fears Israel.

He said while visiting the Israeli settlement of Kiryat Shmona: “The Home Front Defense Ministry is exerting great efforts and funds in preparing for the next war with Hizbullah.”

Information Minister Walid al-Daouq announced after a cabinet session on Wednesday that the government would seek "clarifications" from the U.S. ambassador to Beirut after Hizbullah said it had succeeded in exposing CIA operatives.

Earlier on Wednesday, Agriculture Minister Hussein Hajj Hassan, who represents Hizbullah in the 30-seat government, told reporters during a break from the cabinet meeting that the government had "decided to summon U.S. Ambassador Maura Connelly to question her on this issue."

An unknown assailant tossed a percussion grenade near the home of Mohammed Asmahan in the Palestinian refugee camp of Ain el-Hilweh overnight, causing material damage only, the National News Agency reported Wednesday.

NNA said Asmahan is Palestinian and his house abuts the area known as the region of villas.

National Struggle Front parliamentary bloc wondered if the cabinet will commit to its ministerial statement concerning the funding of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, stressing that the government has to safeguard the country and avoid any negative repercussions amid the developments in the region.

Sources told the pan-Arab daily al-Hayat on Wednesday that ministers loyal to National Struggle Front leader MP Walid Jumblat stress that the cabinet is obliged to fund the tribunal; especially that President Michel Suleiman and Prime Minister Najib Miqati continuously voiced their commitment to the STL.

Prime Minister Najib Miqati insists on funding the Special Tribunal for Lebanon as an obligation towards the international community that should be met, the pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat reported on Wednesday.

“The PM’s decision will be proposed to the cabinet at the right time, but the administrative mechanism began through the directions given to Justice Minister (Shakib Qortbawi) and Finance Minister (Mohammed al-Safadi),” Miqati’s sources told the daily.

Justice Minister Shakib Qortbawi hoped that the government would find a “political” and “legal” solution to the funding of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.

In remarks to pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat, Qortbawi said: “I have an opinion on this matter. I will express it without hesitation when it is discussed by the cabinet.”

Premier Najib Miqati promised President of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, Judge Sir David Baragwanath, on Wednesday to resolve the crisis on the funding of the STL.

Miqati met with Baragwanath at the Grand Serail, reiterating Lebanon’s respect for international resolutions, including 1757. He hoped that the STL would steer clear of politics, a statement issued by the prime minister’s office said.

A huge explosion went off in an alleged arms depot in the Hizbullah stronghold of Siddiqin in the South overnight and party members prevented the security forces from reaching the area, media reports said Wednesday.

The reports said the cause of the blast could not be determined after Hizbullah drew a tight security dragnet around the scene of the explosion.