Syrian FM urges Lebanese army to win battle against armed radicals in Sidon

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al- Moallem said Monday the situation in Lebanon's southern city of Sidon is "dangerous," urging the Lebanese army to win the battle against "armed terrorist groups." During a press conference on Monday in the capital Damascus, Moallem blamed the Lebanese officials for "mistakes" that led to the armed radical groups' existence on Lebanese soil. "We still wish Lebanon security and stability and wish that the Lebanese army would settle the Sidon battle to teach those terrorists a lesson not to explode the situation in other places," he said. Clashes in Sidon, Lebanon's third-largest city, have been raging on since Saturday when radical Islamists affiliated with Sunni cleric Sheikh Ahmad Al-Assir opened fire at an army checkpoint. At least 16 Lebanese soldiers have been killed as the whereabouts of Al-Assir remains unknown. The fighting in Lebanon came against the backdrop of Syrian crisis' spillover, as the Sunnis in Lebanon, who are backing the rebellion in Syria, are pitted against the Shiite group of Hezbollah, which supports the administration of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.