American President George W. Bush has vowed that the international community will not allow Lebanon to be taken over by Iran and Syria. "I strongly condemn Hizbullah's recent efforts, and those of their foreign sponsors in Tehran and Damascus, to use violence and intimidation to bend the government and people of Lebanon to their will," President Bush said in a statement.
Canadian Foreign Minister Maxime Bernier blamed Hizbullah for the latest violence, which resumed Tuesday morning in northern Lebanon. Clashes broke out before dawn in Tripoli and subsided after half an hour, French news agency AFP reported.