President Michel Suleiman on Monday called for “adhering to international legitimacy” and honoring Lebanon’s commitments towards the U.N.-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon.

In a televised address to the nation on the 68th anniversary of Lebanon’s independence, Suleiman said “there is a duty to adhere to international legitimacy, including to the STL, for the sake of justice rather than out of fear of sanctions.”

Syrian security forces on Friday shot dead 20 civilians, including four children, in the regions of Hama, Daraa, Homs and Reef Damascus, the Local Coordination Committees said, on the eve of an Arab League deadline for Syria to stop its lethal crackdown on protesters and as Turkey warned of the risk of civil war.

The latest bloodletting came as thousands of protesters took to the streets in defiance of massive security deployments to urge nations to expel Syrian ambassadors, activists said.

Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun on Thursday noted that the proportional representation law “will not be adopted” in the current form proposed by Interior Minister Marwan Charbel, warning against creating “annexes” to the law.

In an interview with Hizbullah’s Al-Manar television, Aoun said the law “will not be adopted as proposed by minister Charbel; I’m with this law and there can be many variations to the electoral process, but before endorsing them there should be a discussion so that we can choose the most representative one.”

The Arab League on Wednesday gave the Syrian regime three days to halt months of deadly violence against its people or face economic sanctions, Qatar's prime minister said.

The 22-member League is "giving the Syrian government three days to stop the bloody repression" of its civilian population, Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem al-Thani told a press conference after a meeting of member states in Rabat.

Women who delay pregnancy until a later age are placing themselves at increased risk of stroke, according to Dr. Matthew Fink, Professor of Clinical Neurology and Interim Chairman and Neurologist-in-Chief of the Department of Neurology and Neuroscience at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York.

Speaking at the monthly community health seminar, Medicine & U moderated by Professor Basim M. Uthman at the Weill Cornell Medical College in Doha, Dr. Fink said the increasing prevalence of hypertension, cardiac disease, obesity and diabetes also adds to the risk of stroke for mothers.

Prime Minister Najib Miqati reiterated Tuesday that “the stance recently taken by Lebanon at the Arab foreign ministers meeting on Syria is aimed first and last at protecting domestic stability in Lebanon.”

During a cabinet session he headed at the Grand Serail, Miqati stressed that “Lebanon will remain interactive with its Arab surrounding and part of the Arab world,” noting that “Lebanon’s vote at the Arab League stemmed from historical and geographic considerations that take into consideration the Lebanese sensitivities of which our Arab brother are aware.”

Lebanon defeated South Korea 2-1 in the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, sparking a wave of celebrations across Lebanon.

Held at the Cite Sportive stadium in Beirut and attended by President Michel Suleiman, Lebanon’s Ali al-Saadi scored an early goal in the fourth minute after a free kick.

The six Gulf Cooperation Council states said on Tuesday that they oppose a Syrian request for an emergency Arab summit on the bloody crisis in the country.

The GCC "sees that the request to hold an Arab summit at this time is useless," knowing that Arab foreign ministers will meet in Rabat on Wednesday, GCC Secretary General Abdul Latif al-Zayani said.

A heated debate between Baath Party leader Fayez Shukur and Mustaqbal Movement official ex-MP Mustafa Alloush erupted into a verbal clash and a fistfight during a live talk show on MTV on Monday.

As the two were arguing over the Syrian crisis, Shukur repeatedly asked Alloush to refrain from describing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as a “tyrant”, “criminal” and “liar”.

Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri said on Saturday that he is ashamed of the Lebanese government position at the Arab League meeting, noting that the decision taken by the Arab foreign ministers will not affect Lebanon’s security.

“I am ashamed as a Lebanese of the government’s position in the Arab league and I ask the Syrian people not to consider this as the will of the Lebanese,” Hariri said on Twitter fielding questions from his supporters.