The Syrian regime's crackdown against protesters continues. Some estimates say over 3,000 people have been killed since the uprising began six months ago. And it is not just activists within Syria who are affected. Many exiled Syrian dissidents are now in Lebanon but, even there, say they are being threatened, abducted and arrested. Our correspondents in Beirut take a closer look.
Since the Syrian crisis broke out, the price of weapons has exploded in neighbouring Lebanon. The price of a Kalashnikov has risen from $1,200 to $1,800 in three months. But activists say the Syrians who buy Lebanese weapons are not terrorists, as the regime alleges; rather, they're individuals who want to defend themselves against the repression, which has been extremely violent since the uprising began in mid-March.
Lebanon has been following the events in neighbouring Syria closely. In the 1980s, Lebanese allies of Syria's Alawi regime carried out a massacre in the Bab al Tabbaneh district of Tripoli, northern Lebanon. The attack was carried out from another area in Tripoli, known as Jabal Mohsen. Today, Jabal Lohsen residents largely support Bashar al-Assad, but the memories of those living in Bab al Tabbaneh are still too raw.
A new bill being voted today in the Lebanese parliament could give rights to some of the 400,000 Palestinian refugees currently residing in the country. Until now, these refugees were unable to buy property or hold certain jobs in Lebanon, even though many of them were born on Lebanese soil.
Lebanon says it's deploying more troops to shore up security in the south of the country. It follows a spate of attacks on UN peacekeeping forces by residents in the area. They've fuelled concerns that tensions are growing once again in the south of Lebanon.
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Isabelle Dellerba 
