Press Digest for Monday November 18, 2013

The following are summaries of today's major stories published in the Arabic press. LBCI does not edit press digest articles for content, giving English-language readers insight into the various views expressed in newspapers across the Arab world.

• Sheikh Menqara calls on state to penalize those behind the Tripoli blasts, assassination of IAF official

Sheikh Hashem Menqara stressed on Monday that Tripoli's twin blasts and the assassination of the Islamic Action Front official Saadeddine Ghiye indicate that a new phase of political violence has begun.

"The Lebanese state and the civil society should seriously deal with this situation that shows that some parties are taking 'dangerous' decisions leading the country, and mainly Tripoli, into further havoc," he said.

Sheikh Menqara also told An-Nahar daily that the state's judiciary and security apparatuses should "swiftly" uncover the perpetrators of both crimes and penalize them accordingly.

• President Michel Sleiman to tackle case of Syrian refugees in Kuwait-sources

Sources told An-Nahar newspaper on Monday that President Michel Sleiman will tackle the case of the Syrian refugees in Lebanon in his speech set to be delivered in the third African-Arab Summit in Kuwait.

Sources added that President Sleiman will stress to the Arab and African countries that the Lebanese state “is no longer able to bear the burdens of this humanitarian file."

• Qalamoun battle between Syrian regime troops and rebels “did not yet begin” - sources

Sources told Al-Joumhouria on Monday that the battle between the Syrian regime troops backed by Hezbollah fighters and the rebels “did not yet begin” in the Syrian region of Qalamoun.

Sources added that residents of the said region are supporting the Syrian regime troops in their battle, expressing their rejection to the presence of any rebels in the Qalamoun region.

• Joint parliamentary committees to convene to discuss Israeli espionage dossier

Sources told As-Safir newspaper on Monday that the joint parliamentary committees will hold a meeting on Wednesday the 26th of November in order to tackle the Israeli espionage file.

The meeting will be held in the presence of the ambassadors of the UN Security Council's five permanent members and that of the European Union, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Telecommunication Ministry as well as the Lebanese Army leadership.

The daily also reported that foreign ambassadors were invited to attend the meeting so that their countries could provide Lebanon with technical equipment in a bid to prevent the Israeli stations from spying on the country.