Clashes Continue in Tripoli: Dozens Killed, Fear of Wider Conflict

Local Editor

At least 11 people were killed and 50 wounded in a new round of clashes between the rival Tripoli neighborhoods, Jabal Mohsen and Bab al-Tabbeneh.

The weekend fighting was the 18th round in the long-running battle between the two sides.
The Tripoli clashes, the fiercest in months, caused panic among the city's jittery residents, prompting scores of families to leave their homes to safer areas.

The Lebanese Army, deployed in areas separating the combatants in Tripoli in line with a security plan, tried to halt the fighting by responding to the sources of fire.
Army units conducted raids in Tripoli overnight Sunday, arrested eight militants and confiscated their light weapons and ammunitions, the military said in a statement. The detainees were turned over to the relevant authorities.

Six people were killed, including a soldier, and 26 wounded in Sunday's clashes, bringing the death toll in two days of violence to 11 and over 50 wounded. Among the wounded were 10 soldiers and a policeman.
A soldier identified as Abdullah Ajaj died from his wounds after being hit by sniper fire while passing near the fighting area.
Among the victims were Mahmoud al-Mohammad, a Syrian national who died from his wounds after being hit by sniper gunfire at the Malloulah roundabout. Mahmoud Hussein died of a heart attack while fleeing sniper gunfire in the Zahiriyah area.

Heavy shelling engulfed the city starting Saturday night and continued for hours reaching areas that are usually not affected by the fighting, such as Azmi Street and the Maarad road.
Sniper fire blocked the international highway that links Tripoli to the northern region of Akkar.

An old deserted five-story building in Jabal Mohsen was targeted in the fighting, which led to the collapse of the upper three floors. No casualties were reported. Gunmen in Jabal Mohsen accused Bab al-Tabbaneh militants of infiltrating into their neighborhood to rig the building with explosives.

An unknown group, Abu Bakr Hammoud Brigade, claimed responsibility for rigging the building with explosives, saying in a statement that it has joined the fighting in Tripoli.
Military Prosecutor Judge Saqr Saqr issued a judicial order for security agencies to arrest violators in the city as well as fighters engaged in the battles.
The military commanders in the Bab al-Tabbaneh neighborhood issued a statement threatening to target Jabal Mohsen's residents.

For their part, gunmen in Jabal Mohsen vowed to wage what they called "a crushing battle" against "takfiri Salafists" in Bab al-Tabbaneh after midnight Sunday if attacks on their neighborhood were not halted. "Tonight will be the night of victory," they said. They threatened to impose a blockade over Tripoli all the way to the Mina area.
Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said it had been decided to place all security forces under the command of the Lebanese Army, which would take "all appropriate and firm measures to control security" in Tripoli.

"The judiciary has issued arrest warrants against all violators of security in the city," Mikati said after chairing an enlarged meeting of security officials in Tripoli.
Maj. Gen. Ashraf Rifi, former chief of the Internal Security forces, called Mikati to stop exercising his duties in protest against the fighting in Tripoli. He blamed the Syrian regime and its Lebanese allies for the proliferation of arms in Tripoli.

"In the last round of attacks on Tripoli, we have called on [caretaker] Prime Minister Mikati and Tripoli's ministers to stay in the city and cease exercising their duties, but he continued the policy of burying his head in the sand of this conspiracy," Rifi said in a statement.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team