Lebanese President Michel Suleiman on Monday hailed the "extraordinary efforts" of the army and security forces in thwarting criminal plots of extremists against Lebanon.

Suleiman acclaimed the military for apprehending a number of terrorists and exploding a booby trapped car. The bomb was meant to be sent to populated areas and inflict destruction, as happened Sunday in the Nabi Osman village of the Bekaa.

The president also urged the military and security forces to remain on high alert to obstruct the attempts to create strife.

Meanwhile, Lebanese Prime Minister Tammam Salam urged the army to take necessary measures to control the situation in the border regions with Syria in the eastern Bekaa region.

Salam instructed the military commander "to do what it takes to protect civilians, and consolidate stability in Arsal, al-Labweh and nearby towns."

A suicide car bomber struck the Bekaa town of al-Nabi Osman on Sunday, killing four people and injuring ten others.

Al Nusra Front, an Al-Qaida linked terrorist group, claimed responsibility for the attack.

The explosion came hours after the Syrian army, backed by Hezbollah fighters, captured Yabroud, a former rebel stronghold near the Syrian-Lebanese border.

Lebanon has long been divided over the clashes in neighboring Syria. The country's Shiite Hezbollah and its allies back Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government, while the Sunni-led opposition supports the rebels. That has made Hezbollah the target of repeated car bombings in Lebanon.