BEIRUT: A Hezbollah delegation warned after meeting Maronite Patriarch Beshara Rai Monday that the turmoil in Syria could spill over into Lebanon and called on rival Lebanese factions not to interfere in internal Syrian affairs.

“The circumstances through which our country is passing are calm now. But the circumstances in the region within which we live are difficult, harsh and complicated,” Sheikh Mohammad Amr, head of the Hezbollah delegation, told reporters after the meeting with Rai in Bkirki, the seat of the influential Catholic Maronite Church, north of Beirut.

“We fear the [regional] conflict will spread to Lebanon. But with your wisdom and the wisdom of Lebanese leaders on whom we call to use reason and logic in their political movement and dialogue to stay away from interfering in others’ affairs because Lebanon cannot afford any political, military or security trouble,” Amr added.

Describing the situation in Lebanon as “delicate,” he said: “Lebanon carries a message. This message must be expressed through dialogue and logic and not by any other means.”

The popular uprising in Syria against the regime of President Bashar Assad, now in its 10th month, has sharply split the Lebanese. The Hezbollah-led March 8 alliance backs the Assad regime, while the opposition March 14 coalition, led by the Future Movement of former Prime Minister Saad Hariri, has come out in support of Syrian protesters demanding Assad’s ouster.

The Lebanese government, which is dominated by Hezbollah and its March 8 allies, has followed a policy of dissociating itself from U.N. or Arab League resolutions condemning Syria over its brutal crackdown on protesters.

The Hezbollah delegation visited Rai to congratulate him on Christmas and the New Year. The meeting was also attended by former Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir. The delegation said it hoped Rai would continue to reach out to all Lebanese.

“We are part of this loving nation with its diversity because this is the message of Lebanon. We are a key component of this beloved and blessed nation,” Amr said.

Meanwhile, Hariri warned that the credibility of the Arab League observer mission in Syria was at stake and slammed once more Assad over the way he was handling his country’s crisis.

“The AL [Arab League] observers don’t have much time, credibility is of essence and so far Bashar regime has been killing more and more,” Hariri said during a live session with his supporters on his Twitter page Monday.

“It’s time for AL observers to say the truth, the full story and not like Bashar regime wants it,” Hariri added.

In December, Damascus signed an amended agreement allowing in Arab League observers to oversee the implementation of a peace plan to end the crisis in Syria.

The Arab League initiative calls on the Syrian government to withdraw the military from the streets, release political prisoners, allow journalists into the country and launch dialogue with the opposition.

However, the observer mission, which began its work late December, has been criticized from several sides, including from rights activists, the Syrian opposition and most recently by the head of the Arab Parliament, Ali al-Salem al-Dekbas.

Dekbas called Sunday for the withdrawal of observers from Syria, saying the mission was allowing Damascus to cover up unabated violence and graft.

Echoing calls by the Syrian opposition, Hariri told his followers on Twitter that the observers needed to provide feedback about what they were seeing on the ground.

Responding to a question as to whether he thought the signing of the protocol by Damascus would put an end to the killing in Syria, Hariri said: “No, I didn’t [expect a change] and I said it [before], remember, but now if this week the observers continue without saying anything what’s the point then?”

Hariri, a staunch critic of Assad, again slammed the embattled president, saying he appeared to be using the observer mission to carry on with a crackdown the U.N. estimates has killed more than 5,000 people.

“I feel the regime thinks that signing the protocol gives him [Assad] a license to kill,” Hariri tweeted in one post, adding: “It’s unbelievable, the Syrian regime says we want reform [and] the conclusion is more killing.”

Hariri rebutted Defense Minister Fayez Ghosn’s claims that members of Al-Qaeda were operating in Lebanon. “It’s been 7 years talking about Al-Qaeda in Lebanon,” Hariri said. “It’s all a big lie.”

Last month, Ghosn said Al-Qaeda militants were sneaking into the Bekaa town of Arsal under the guise that they were Syrian dissidents. However, Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Interior Minister Marwan Charbel have denied that Al-Qaeda was operating on Lebanese soil.

Also, Hariri’s ally, Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea, said that Lebanon will begin a process of state building following the collapse of the Assad regime, which he predicted would likely happen in 2012.

“Following the fall of the Syrian regime, we will enter a complicated political process before we create another political system that is well defined and capable of building relations between Lebanon and Syria as two [separate] states,” Geagea told a gathering of his party’s general committee in Maarab at the weekend.

“The year 2012 will witness the fall of the Syrian regime. This will have a significant impact on Lebanon’s situation and will result in another balance of power,” Geagea said.

“Presumably, after the fall of the Syrian regime, we should start the process of building a state,” he added.

Geagea also spoke about Lebanese prisoners in Syria, saying Assad’s fall would give Lebanon an opportunity to reveal the truth surrounding their fate. It is not known exactly how many Lebanese nationals are held in Syrian prisons but NGO estimates put the number at around 130 people.