Syrian refugee camp torched after Lebanon captive killed

Tripoli, Lebanon: Unidentified assailants set fire to Syrian refugee tents in northern Lebanon Sunday for the second time in as many days after a day of incitement against Syrians in the country sparked by the execution of a captive policeman.

A security source told The Daily Stary that the tents, located in the town of Mashha in Akkar, housed a number of Syrian refugee families.

No casualties were registered.

Akkar Mayor, Zakaria al-Zoghbi, condemned the attack and called on political and security forces to identify and arrest the criminals, according to the state-run National News Agency.

This is the second time in two days that Syrian refugees residing in the town of have been targeted by unknown assailants.

Syrian refugee tents were also burned earlier Saturday, after a statement was issued by local residents demanding Syrians leave the village.

Tensions between refugees and Lebanese host communities heightened after the family of a policeman killed by the Nusra Front vowed Saturday to prevent aid from reaching Syrian refugees.

During a press conference, the family of Ali Bazzal, a policeman killed by the Nusra Front Friday, described Syrians living in Arsal, the northeastern region bordering Syria, as “a bunch of terrorist, takfiris and not refugees, and that was evident when they attacked the Army in Arsal.”

“We will not allow any international or local organization to transport aid to these terrorists ... and anyone who block a road in solidarity with them will be supporting terrorists.”

Hours after the Nusra Front announced that it had executed Bazzal in a tweet with a picture of a man said to be of the captive with a machine gun firing shots at his head, residents of Bazzalieh kidnapped three men near the town.

The kidnappers shot and wounded a Syrian man who accompanied the three. He was transferred to a Baalbek hospital.

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Bill Cassidy Defeats Mary Landrieu In La. Senate Runoff

Republican congressman Bill Cassidy has defeated Democratic incumbent Mary Landrieu in Louisiana's runoff Senate election, boosting the Republican majority in the incoming Senate.

NPR's Debbie Elliott reported Friday that Cassidy, who has pledged to repeal Obamacare, followed a campaign strategy of linking Landrieu to Obama, highlighting her support of the unpopular president.

Landrieu, meanwhile, faced funding challenges: "With the midterm elections settled elsewhere, and control of Capitol Hill solidified for the GOP, Mary Landrieu has been left largely to fend for herself. National Democratic groups have pulled spending for the Louisiana runoff."

Landrieu was the last remaining Democratic senator from the Deep South.

Lebanese Army arrests at least 900 in November

BEIRUT: The Lebanese Army said Saturday that troops had arrested at least 900 people in the month of November on terror and drug-related charges among other crimes.

In a statement, the military said its units across the country detained 947 people of various nationalities for their involvement in terrorist activity, shooting, attacking citizens, drugs, arms smuggling and possession as well as residing in Lebanon without a valid permit.

The arrests also resulted in the confiscation of 69 vehicles, 61 motorcycles and fishing boats, a large quantity of arms, ammunition and military gear.

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Geagea asks Aoun to work on list of possible presidential candidates

BEIRUT: Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea Saturday called on his presidential rival, MP Michel Aoun, to work with him to reach a compromise to resolve the long-deadlocked election.

Geagea said that Aoun had two options, either attend Wednesday's election session where "you and I would be the presidential candidates" in the "real election game, no other candidate can impose themselves.”

“Or we stop saying that Sunnis and Shiites are choosing a president and sit together to reach an understanding on some names, and we refer them to Parliament for a vote,” Geagea said. “The ball is still in our court, but we cannot tell the universe to wait for us while some are disrupting the poll.”

Aoun, the leader of the Free Patriotic Movement, has said he is ready to attend a Parliament session to elect a president if the race were restricted to himself and Geagea, hinting that MP Walid Jumblatt's candidate, MP Michel Helou, should withdraw from the race.

Geagea is the March 14 coalition’s presidential nominee, while Aoun is the March 8 group’s undeclared candidate. Aoun and some March 8 MPs, including Hezbollah, have boycotted the parliamentary sessions to elect a new president, arguing that such votes are futile unless parties agree beforehand on a consensus candidate.

“We cannot leave things as they are. The presidential post is shrinking in value and we cannot leave it vacant regardless of the circumstances,” said Geagea, who has repeatedly criticized Aoun for hijacking the presidential vote to secure his own victory.

While welcoming the anticipated dialogue between the Future Movement and Hezbollah, Geagea rejected attempting to solve the presidential impasse in that forum.

“Some say that Sunnis and Shiites are heading toward a dialogue to agree on a new Christian president. Sunnis and Shiites seek to defuse the existing sectarian tensions amid a larger Sunni-Shiite conflict in the region,” he said.

“This is a blessed step, but discussing a president and other national issues requires the presence of all parties. Therefore, we should not give this dialogue more than it can handle.”

“All Christian figures in Lebanon consider the presidential post a Christian responsibility that should see a Christian agreement, but what can we do when a major Christian party is disrupting the election?”