Russia is ready to host direct talks between the Syrian regime and rebel representatives, a top official said Wednesday, in a bid to end 14 months of bloodshed that has claimed over 10,000 lives.

Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said peace mediator Kofi Annan's deputy was trying to secure agreement with the fractured foreign-based Syrian opposition on who could meet Bashar Assad's Vice President Farouq al-Sharaa.

U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Maura Connelly expressed on Wednesday the United States’ appreciation for the efforts of the Internal Security Forces and Lebanese army to work together to maintain calm in Lebanon.

She emphasized after holding talks with ISF chief General Ashraf Rifi her country’s “concern for the current security situation in Lebanon and called on all parties to exercise restraint and respect for Lebanon’s security and stability.”

Speculation was rife on Wednesday among Syrian anti-regime activists over the alleged "killing" of President Bashar Assad's brother-in-law who is also Syria's deputy defense minister.

Assef Shawkat, former head of military intelligence, was poisoned, according to anti-regime activists. The authorities in Damascus could not be reached for comment and have not responded publicly to the claim.

Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun noted on Wednesday that a large number of Lebanese have steered away from the path of resistance and forgotten about the Israeli threat against Lebanon.

He said: “Some sides are seeking to spread the unrest in Syria to Lebanon in order for us to surrender” to foreign powers.

President Michel Suleiman on Wednesday said that a letter sent to United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon by Syria’s envoy to the U.N. Bashar al-Jaafari was not based on “verified facts.”

“It is not based on verified facts, and moreover the information of the Army Command and the Lebanese security agencies say totally otherwise,” Suleiman told U.N. Special Coordinator for Lebanon Derek Plumbly during a meeting at the Baabda Palace.

The head of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) Riad al-Asaad condemned on Wednesday the kidnapping of Lebanese pilgrims in Aleppo on Tuesday, revealing that an investigation committee was formed in order to tackle the case, reported the Kuwaiti al-Rai newspaper in an interview to be published Thursday.

He told the newspaper: “Mafias kidnapped the pilgrims and we will risk our life to liberate them.”

Speaker Nabih Berri stressed on Wednesday the importance of national dialogue in ending disputes in Lebanon, most notably after the unrest in northern Lebanon.

He said during his weekly meeting with lawmakers: “Harming the army is a red line.”

Russia's foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, warned on Wednesday that the conflict in Syria could spread to Lebanon and “end very badly.”

Speaking in a televised news conference, Lavrov said that there is "a tangible threat" of the Syrian uprising spilling over to Lebanon which "could end very badly."

Three Iranian truck drivers have been abducted by "armed opposition groups" in Syria, according to Iran's charge d’affaires in Damascus quoted by media Wednesday.

Abbas Golrou said the drivers, identified as Morteza Adeli, Hussein Alinejad and Esmaeel Mohammed Zeinali, were taking unspecified cargo from Iran to Syria when they were abducted on Monday.

Syria's main opposition coalition issued on Wednesday a call for the prompt release of the Lebanese pilgrims in Aleppo, accusing the Syrian regime of being involved in the kidnapping.

The Syrian National Council "does not think it is impossible that the regime is involved in this operation," in order to sow "disorder" in neighboring Lebanon, the group said.