News Introduction for Saturday 21-01-2012

Many Arab states expressed their refusal over sending their troops to Syria to end the crisis as in the international committee failed until now to issue any plan related to that file keeping the Arab monitors in Syria the only available option.

The outcome of the Arab Ministerial Committee and the Arab league’s meeting tomorrow in Cairo is more likely to extend the mandate of the Arab Monitors deployed in Syria for a month and raising their numbers to 300 monitor.

The Syrian Transitional Council refused the decision considering that the Arab Monitors are not properly equipped or eligible to issue a substantive report on the events in Syria, calling on the international committee to raise Syria’s file to the United Nations.

Two events shook Lebanon that were a direct result of the Syrian turmoil. An attack launched by the Syrian naval forces on a fishing boat carrying three fishermen: Fadi Hamad, Khaled Hamad and his nephew Maher; the Syrian forces dragged them to the Syrian territories after firing at their boat.

The shootings killed one and injured one other while information revealed that the last person is currently arrested at the Syrian Intelligence in Tartous.

On the other hand Syria declared that the competent authorities clashed on Friday with an armed terrorist group which tried to infiltrate the Syrian-Lebanese borders in Talkalakh area in Homs, killing three of its members while the rest fled into the Lebanese territories.

An official source told SANA that the terrorist group was trying to enter with loads of weapons near al-Msherfeh village, indicating that the weapons were confiscated.

No injuries were reported among the members of the competent authorities .