Bahrain's Information Minister Samira Rajab accused Hizbullah on Saturday of “extremism” and "terrorism," describing it as a “terrorist militia.”

“Hizbullah is clearly present in Manama,” the minister said in comments published in the Saudi al-Watan newspaper.

Syria's Mufti Sheikh Ahmed Badreddine Hassoun on Friday called on the Lebanese politicians to visit his country similar to Syrians' move towards Lebanon during its war, explaining that this is what “prevented partition”.

"Lebanese politicians should learn from Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi's step,” Hassoun said in an interview with al-Mayadeen television, expressing that he had wished if Grand Mufti Mohammed Rashid Qabbani was among the first travelers to his country.

The opposition National Coalition said on Friday it refuses to accept President Bashar Assad in any talks on ending Syria's war, as part of a "framework" it has drawn up for solutions to the conflict.

The Coalition issued the framework after a meeting in Cairo to discuss a proposal by its chief, Ahmed Moaz al-Khatib, to hold peace talks with regime representatives, a move that ruffled feathers in the umbrella opposition group.

President Bashar Assad's regime has sent a letter to the United Nations blasting Turkey's "destructive" role in the conflict that has ravaged Syria for the past 23 months, state media reported Friday.

The Syrian foreign ministry's letter accuses Turkey of harboring "terrorists from al-Qaida's network", the SANA news agency said.

Finnish customs said Friday they had seized military equipment en route from Russia to Syria on board a Finnish ship docked at Helsinki's Vuosaari port in January.

During an inspection of the ship, customs officials discovered spare parts for tanks in a container on board the M/S Finnsun, Finnish Customs said in a statement.

Thousands of people in Sunni-majority areas of Iraq called on Friday for the government's fall amid a spike in violence that has accompanied a political stalemate two months before provincial polls.

The demonstrations, which have been ongoing for nearly two months, have steadfastly urged for the ouster of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki while decrying the alleged targeting of minority Sunnis by the Shiite-led authorities.

U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Maura Connelly underscored on Friday that the U.S. remains concerned that developments in Syria not contribute to instability in Lebanon.

She emphasized “U.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.”

Syrian women waiting for pre-natal care at a Lebanese clinic know their pregnancies may end prematurely due to stress and fear, and that they may be unable to provide for their babies.

Many of the women are unable to cover the high cost of hospital care in the northern portal city of Tripoli, home to thousands of Syrians uprooted by the conflict that has ravaged their country for nearly two years.

Prime Minister Najib Miqati stated on Friday that the government is committed to the draft law that it referred to parliament.

“An active law already exists, that of the 1960 law,” which was adopted during the 2009 elections, he remarked.

Syria's army and rebels were preparing Friday for a major battle for control of strategic airports in Aleppo, a watchdog said, four days after insurgents launched assaults on airbases in the northern province.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said intermittent clashes were reported around Aleppo international airport, Nayrab airbase and another military complex as the two sides readied for a major fight.