Beirut  - Saad Hariri, the Sunni leader of Lebanon's western- backed ruling majority accused Syria on Saturday of meddling in Lebanese political affairs and exporting terrorism into the country, local media have reported.

In a clear reference to remarks made by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad about Lebanon's instability, Hariri said that the side that "exports terror to north Lebanon has no right to fear the spread of fundamentalism in Lebanon."

Washington, Sep 6: Iraqi leaders and officials have expressed disappointment over a report that US had spied on Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and other top leaders.

“If it is true, it reflects that there is no trust and it reflects also that the institutions in the United States are used to spying on their friends and their enemies in the same way,” said Ali al-Dabbagh, spokesman of the Iraqi Government.

“We will ask for an explanation,” the Washington Post quoted Dabbagh, as saying.

Los Angeles  - Republican presidential candidate John McCain has set a television ratings record - 38.9 million viewers watched his acceptance speech on Thursday night, according to figures released Friday by ratings firm Nielsen Media Research.

Thursday was also the opening night of the American football season. The New York Giants-Washington Redskins game ended minutes before McCain took to the stage.

McCain's viewing figures narrowly exceeded the 38.4 million viewers who tuned in to watch Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama last week.

Tripoli  - US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met with Libyan leader Moamer Gaddafi in Tripoli on Friday during her landmark visit marking the end of decades of frosty relations between the two countries.

Gaddafi welcomed Rice and her aides in a building in a government compound in central Tripoli. Photographers, who left the meeting hall after their first few shots, reported that Gaddafi was wearing a white Libyan robe decorated with a brooch in the shape of Africa.

Baghdad  - The Iraqi government warned Friday that its relationship with US intelligence agencies could be damaged if a report that the United States spied on Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al- Maliki was accurate.

"If it is true, it casts a shadow on the future relations with such institutions," spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said in a reference to the CIA.

"It also reflects that institutions in the United States are used to spying on their friends and their enemies in the same way," he added.