Suleiman to Warn on Syrian Refugees Burden at Arab-African Summit

President Michel Suleiman is expected to issue a warning this week that Lebanon will no longer be able to confront the burden of refugees as the weekend witnessed an exodus of thousands of Syrians.

They have been fleeing heavy fighting in the mountainous region of Qalamoun, an area that stretches north of the Syrian capital along the Lebanese frontier.

It appeared to be part of a long-anticipated government offensive aimed at cutting an important rebel supply route and cementing President Bashar Assad's hold on a key corridor from the capital to the coast.

Since the heavy fighting in Qalamoun began Friday, some 10,000 Syrians have fled across the border to the Lebanese frontier town of Arsal, former Mayor Bassel Hujeiri said. He said the new arrivals have crammed into wedding halls and improvised shacks.

Voice of Lebanon radio (93.3) put the number at 16,000.

Suleiman is expected to issue the warning in his speech at the two-day Arab-African summit that kicks off in Kuwait on Tuesday.

He traveled to Kuwait along with first lady Wafaa on Monday.

He is also preparing along with the involved ministries for the second donor conference that Kuwait is expected to host in January 2014.

Arab and African foreign ministers met in Kuwait on Sunday hoping to accelerate a strategy to bolster economic cooperation, investment and trade ahead of a summit this week.

Tuesday's summit will be the first meeting of its kind since 2010, when leaders met in Libya prior to the Arab Spring uprisings that toppled longstanding dictatorships there and elsewhere in North Africa and the Middle East.

Thirty-four heads of state, including Suleiman, seven vice-presidents and three heads of government have confirmed their attendance at the summit, which will bring together 71 countries and organizations, according to organizers.