There are reports that gunmen dedicated to a controversial Salafist sheikh, who is fiercely opposed to the Shiite Hezbollah movement, were behind the incident that occurred on Tuesday.

“The shooting by armed men led to the killing of a citizen and several others have been injured,” the Lebanese army said after deploying forces in Sidon after the incident.

The army added that by late Tuesday “the situation (in Sidon) was back to normal.”

In another incident on Wednesday, Lebanese security sources said two rockets fired from Syrian territories hit a Hezbollah stronghold in eastern Lebanon’s Bekaa region.

The Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah is reportedly fighting the al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Nusra Front under the FSA umbrella in the northern part of Bekaa Valley.

On Sunday, Lebanese security sources said gunmen killed at least four Shia Muslims in eastern Lebanon’s Bekaa valley near the border with Syria.

“Gunmen killed three members of the Jaafar family and a man from the Amhaz family as they were passing through the Qaa area of the Bekaa,” the unnamed security source said.

Also, on June 5, the foreign-backed militants launched at least twelve Grad rockets on Baalbek, wounding at least one child.

Syria has been gripped by turmoil since March 2011 and the foreign-sponsored militancy has taken its toll on the lives of many people, including large numbers of Syrian soldiers and security personnel.

Damascus says the West and its regional allies, such as Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey, are supporting the militants.

In an interview broadcast on Turkish television in April, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said if the militants take power in Syria, they could destabilize the entire Middle East region for decades.

“If the unrest in Syria leads to the partitioning of the country, or if the terrorist forces take control… the situation will inevitably spill over into neighboring countries and create a domino effect throughout the Middle East and beyond,” he stated.

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) – Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr has issued a stern warning to the ringleader of al-Qaeda against the terrorist group’s further intervention in Syria.

Sadr said Monday that Ayman al-Zawahiri needs to stay away from Syria’s affairs and allow Sunnis and Alawites to live peacefully in Syria as they always did.

He condemned al-Qaeda’s killing of Muslims and said the group and its extremist ways have no place in Islamic nations.

Zawahiri recently said that the notorious Al-Nusra Front in Syria “is an independent branch of Al-Qaeda”. The militant group has carried out a range of atrocities in the Arab country.

The remarks by the influential Iraqi cleric come a day after a spate of violent bomb attacks that killed scores of people across Iraq.

Sunday’s blasts began with a parked car bomb which exploded in the city of Kut — 60 kilometers southeast of Baghdad. Six people were killed and 15 others wounded in that attack.

The attack was followed by another car bomb outside the city which targeted construction workers, killing five and wounded 12 others, police officials said.

One of the deadliest attacks took place in the Shia-populated neighborhood of al-Ameen in southeastern Baghdad. Police said a bomber blew himself up inside a cafe, killing at least 11 people and wounding 25 others.

Other attacks were carried out in the cities of Hillah, Madian, Aziziyah, Mahmudiyah, Nasiriyah, Tuz Khurmatu, Najaf, and Basra on Sunday. Reports said that most of the car bombs hit Shia-majority areas.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the bombings, but al-Qaeda-linked militant groups, which seek to destabilize the central government of Iraq, frequently carry out such coordinated attacks.

There has recently been an upsurge in violence across Iraq, and the authorities say Qatar and Saudi Arabia have had a hand in some of the deadly incidents.

The United Nations says a total of 1,045 people were killed and nearly 2,400 were injured in violent incidents in Iraq in the month of May.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has said that militant groups and the remnants of the former Ba’athist regime are responsible for the latest wave of violence.

An unmanned aerial vehicle entered Lebanese airspace over the southern village of al-Naqoura, situated 91 kilometers (57 miles) south of Beirut, at 8:30 a.m. local time (0530 GMT) on Friday, according to a statement issued by the Lebanese military on Friday.

The remote-controlled aircraft carried out surveillance flights over several areas in southern Lebanon, including the towns of Riyaq and Baalbek, before it left Lebanon’s airspace at 6:30 p.m. local time (1530 GMT) while flying over the town of Alma al-Shaab.

Later in the day, two Israeli fighter jets crossed into Lebanon’s airspace over the southern border village of Kfar Kila, located 96 kilometers (59 miles) south of Beirut, at 10:50 a.m. local time (0750 GMT).

The warplanes flew over several areas in Lebanon before leaving the country’s airspace at 12:20 p.m. local time (0920 GMT) while flying over the town of Alma al-Shaab.

On Thursday, an Israeli drone violated Lebanese airspace over the village of Kfar Kila at 7:15 a.m. local time (0415 GMT) and flew over several areas of southern Lebanon.

The Israeli aircraft left Lebanese airspace at 6:35 p.m. local time (1535 GMT) while flying over the village of al-Naqoura.

Another Israeli unmanned aerial vehicle crossed into Lebanon’s airspace over the village of al-Naqoura at 8 p.m. local time (1700 GMT). The plane carried out surveillance flights over several areas in southern Lebanon and left at 6:10 a.m. local time (0310 GMT) on Friday while flying over the southern village of Rmeish.

Four Israeli warplanes entered Lebanon’s airspace over the village of Kfar Kila at 8:30 p.m. local time (1730 GMT) on Thursday. The fighter jets flew over several areas in Lebanon before leaving the country’s airspace at 9:50 p.m. local time (1850 GMT) while flying over the town of Alma al-Shaab.

Israel violates Lebanon’s airspace on an almost daily basis, claiming the flights serve surveillance purposes.

Lebanon’s government, the Hezbollah resistance movement, and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, have repeatedly condemned the overflights, saying they are in clear violation of UN Resolution 1701 and the country’s sovereignty.

UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which brokered a ceasefire in the war of aggression Israel launched against Lebanon in 2006, calls on Israel to respect Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

In 2009, Lebanon filed a complaint with the United Nations, presenting over 7,000 documents pertaining to Israeli violations of Lebanese territory.

According to reports published on Wednesday, the so-called Free Syrian Army (FSA) launched at least four rockets into Bekaa Valley.

There were no immediate reports of possible damage or casualties.

The Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah is reportedly fighting the al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Nusra Front under the FSA umbrella in the northern part of Bekaa Valley.

The Syria crisis began in March 2011, and many people, including large numbers of soldiers and security personnel, have been killed in the violence.

The Syrian government says that the chaos is being orchestrated from outside the country, and there are reports that a very large number of the militants are foreign nationals.

Damascus says the West and its regional allies, such as Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey, are supporting the militants.

In an interview broadcast on Turkish television in April, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said that if the militants take power in Syria, they could destabilize the entire Middle East region for decades.

“If the unrest in Syria leads to the partitioning of the country, or if the terrorist forces take control… the situation will inevitably spill over into neighboring countries and create a domino effect throughout the Middle East and beyond,” he stated.

The clash between the rival groups occurred on Thursday in Tripoli’s Old Souk area, AFP reported.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said two of the wounded were soldiers, though the identity of the man killed in the exchange of gunfire in the markets of central Tripoli had not been confirmed.

The battle was the latest in a string of Syria-related incidents in the city and came after some three weeks of sectarian fighting in the flashpoint Jabal Mohsen and Bab al-Tebbaneh neighborhoods, during which around 40 people were killed.

The Army says its units have been deployed on the streets of Tripoli in a bid to restore calm to the city.

The Syria crisis began in March 2011, and many people, including large numbers of soldiers and security personnel, have been killed in the violence.

The Syrian government says that the chaos is being orchestrated from outside the country, and there are reports that a very large number of the militants are foreign nationals.

Damascus says the West and its regional allies, such as Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey, are supporting the militants.

“The battle today has one goal only which is to face Israel and those serving its interest. Hezbollah’s stances are based on this,” he added.

“Today it has been proven that betting on the fall of a Syria that supports the resistance is a delusion and a failure, so is choosing political stances based on the achievements of the American-Israeli scheme.”

His eminence reiterated calls for finding a political solution to the Syrian crisis, rejecting international powers’ attempts to take over lands in the Arab world and support the Zionist entity.

“The region’s people have set their minds on recovering their lands and their rights,” he assured.

Syria’s mercenaries conceded on Tuesday they had lost the battle for the strategic town of al-Qusayr.

The Syrian Army launched on May 19 a large-scale operation in the city to clear the area of terrorist gangs and liberate the citizens stuck there.

On Wednesday, at least one child was injured by the attack on the town which borders Syria.

Earlier in the day, the Syrian army gained control of the strategic town of Qusayr in the west of the country.

The Syria crisis began in March 2011, and many people, including large numbers of soldiers and security personnel, have been killed in the violence.

The Syrian government says that the chaos is being orchestrated from outside the country, and there are reports that a very large number of the militants are foreign nationals.

Damascus says the West and its regional allies, such as Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey, are supporting the militants.

In an interview broadcast on Turkish television in April, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said that if the militants take power in Syria, they could destabilize the entire Middle East region for decades.

“If the unrest in Syria leads to the partitioning of the country, or if the terrorist forces take control… the situation will inevitably spill over into neighboring countries and create a domino effect throughout the Middle East and beyond,” he stated.

An Israeli drone entered the airspace over the southern village of al-Naqoura, situated 91 kilometers (57 miles) south of the Lebanese capital, Beirut, at 6:45 a.m. local time (0345 GMT) on Sunday, according to a statement issued by the Lebanese military.

The remote-controlled aircraft carried out surveillance flights over several areas in southern Lebanon, including the towns of Riyaq, Baalbek and Zahleh, before it left Lebanon’s airspace at 2:40 p.m. local time (1140 GMT) while flying over the town of Alma al-Shaab.

Four Israeli warplanes also crossed into Lebanon’s airspace over the southern border village of Kfar Kila, located 96 kilometers (59 miles) south of Beirut, at 9:20 a.m. local time (0620 GMT) on Sunday.

The warplanes flew over several areas in Lebanon before leaving the airspace at 11:00 a.m. local time (0800 GMT) while flying over Alma al-Shaab.

The Israeli regime violates Lebanon’s airspace on an almost daily basis, claiming the flights serve surveillance purposes.

Lebanon’s government, the Hezbollah resistance movement, and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, have repeatedly condemned the overflights, saying they are in clear violation of UN Resolution 1701 and the country’s sovereignty.

UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which brokered a ceasefire in the war of aggression Israel launched on Lebanon in 2006, urges the Tel Aviv regime to respect Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

The order was issued on Sunday hours after Israeli warplanes conducted overflights over several parts of Lebanon, including the capital, Beirut.

“President Michel Sleiman tasked Foreign Minister Adnan Mansur with filing an urgent complaint to the United Nations about Israel’s persistent airspace violations, including over all of Lebanon this morning, including the capital Beirut,” said a statement by president’s office.

Israel violates Lebanon’s airspace on an almost daily basis, claiming the flights serve surveillance purposes.

Lebanon’s government, the Hezbollah resistance movement, and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, have repeatedly condemned the overflights, saying they are in clear violation of the Lebanese sovereignty and UN Resolution 1701, which ended the Israeli war on Lebanon in 2006.

In May, the UN called on Israel to halt increased military air patrols over Lebanon after UNIFIL protested against a surge in Israeli flights over the country.

According to evidence-backed statistics submitted to the UN by the Lebanese government in 2009, Israel had violated the resolution over 7000 times “by crossing Lebanese airspace,” waters, and border on an almost daily basis since the implementation of the resolution.

The Lebanese National News Agency reported that the aircraft flew over the Bekaa Valley and other parts of the country early on Sunday in blatant violation of a UN Security Council resolution.

Israel violates Lebanon’s airspace on an almost daily basis, claiming the flights serve surveillance purposes.

Lebanon’s government, the Hezbollah resistance movement, and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, have repeatedly condemned the overflights, saying they are in clear violation of UN Resolution 1701 and the Lebanese sovereignty.

UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which brokered a ceasefire in the war of aggression Israel launched on Lebanon in 2006, calls on the Tel Aviv regime to respect Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

In 2009, Lebanon filed a complaint with the United Nations, presenting over 7,000 documents pertaining to Israeli violations of Lebanese territory.