United Nations, July 11 (IANS): The UN Security Council (UNSC) Wednesday expressed concern over the escalating violence in Lebanon following influx of Syrian refugees and sovereignty challenges.

The "impact of the Syrian crisis on Lebanon's stability and security becomes more and more apparent," reported Xinhua citing a UNSC presidential statement after a briefing by the special coordinator for Lebanon Derek Plumbly and Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Herve Ladsous.

"The security council underscores its growing concern at the marked increase of cross-border fire from the Syrian Arab Republic into Lebanon, which caused death and injury among the Lebanese population," the statement said.

It also caused "incursions, abductions, and arms trafficking across the Lebanese-Syrian border", it added.

The UNSC called on the global community to increase assistance to Lebanon, which now hosts over 587,000 Syrian refugees as well as 65,500 Palestinian refugees.