A U.N. official called Wednesday for stronger international efforts to keep sectarian tensions in Syria from spilling into neighboring Lebanon . `` The situation in Lebanon has become more precarious and the need for continued international support to the government and the Lebanese Armed Forces increasingly important , '' Jeffrey Feltman , U.N. under-secretary general for political affairs , told the United Nations Security Council during its monthly meeting on the Middle East . `` Tensions over domestic and security concerns remain high throughout the country and are easily exacerbated by developments in Syria , '' he said . What you need to know about Syria today . Feltman urged a clampdown on arms smuggling across the Syrian-Lebanese border , which he said posed a risk to both countries . Syria 's violence has been spilling into Lebanon since May , when a group of Shiite pilgrims was kidnapped in Syria . A series of gun battles , riots and angry protests that month left at least 11 people dead . Feltman cited the recent spate of kidnappings in Lebanon and Syria by people loyal to the Sunni-dominated rebels and by others aligned with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad , an Alawite Muslim with strong Shiite support . Will Asma al-Assad take a stand or stand by her man ? `` In his report to the General Assembly , the secretary-general strongly , strongly condemned kidnapping and retaliatory hostage taking in Syria and Lebanon , and called for an immediate release of all those detained without due process and in violation of their human rights , '' Feltman said , referring to Ban Ki-moon . As Feltman spoke in New York , sniper fire more than 5,000 miles away rattled Lebanon 's divided city of Tripoli for a third consecutive day . The bloodshed in Syria has aggravated decades-old animosities between residents of rival areas of Tripoli : the Bab-al-Tibbaneh neighborhood dominated by Sunnis , and the adjacent Jabal Mohsen neighborhood , which is dominated by Alawites . This week , gun battles in Tripoli have left at least seven people dead and dozens wounded , Lebanese state-run media reported . Both sides said children playing with BB guns initiated the violence , which somehow escalated into shooting by adult residents armed with guns loaded with real bullets . In response , the Lebanese army has intervened , seeking to impose order by force . Syria 's neighbors : What 's at stake ? The violence has raised fears that factional rivalries could erupt into warfare in a country where power is constitutionally balanced among Shiites , Sunnis and Christians . Syrian troops were deployed in Lebanon between 1976 and 2005 , primarily in the north . They were initially called in to help stop a brewing civil war but maintained their significant presence -- which once numbered 40,000 -- long afterward . Many fear Syria 's civil war could threaten the political balance in Lebanon -- one that has managed to prevail since the end of Lebanon 's 15-year civil war in 1990 . Obama warns Syria not to cross 'red line '
`` The situation in Lebanon has become more precarious , '' Jeffrey Feltman says . He urges a clampdown on arms smuggling across the Syrian-Lebanese border . Kidnappings have to stop , he says .