By SCHEHEREZADE FARAMARZI, Associated Press Writer, Jun 4, EIN EL-HILWEH CAMP, Lebanon – Islamic militants clashed with Lebanese troops at the country’s biggest Palestinian refugee camp Monday, threatening to open a southern battle front that could complicate the army’s effort to defeat al-Qaida-inspired extremists in the north. Two government soldiers and a militant were reported killed in fighting at the Ein el-Hilweh camp in the southern city of Sidon, which began when the Jund al-Sham group attacked army outposts late Sunday.
The assault was seen as an attempt by Jund al-Sham to ease military pressure on an allied Islamic group, fatah al islam whose guerrillas have been battered by army attacks since May 20 in the Nahr el-Bared refugee camp near Tripoli in northern Lebanon.The bombardment of Nahr el-Bared has angered Palestinians in some of Lebanon’s 11 other refugee camps and there were fears fighting could spread as a senior Fatah Islam commander at Nahr el-Bared vowed Monday to take the battle to Ein el-Hilweh.
Also Monday, a bomb exploded in an empty bus parked in the Christian neighborhood of Bouchrieh east of Beirut, injuring 10 passers-by, officials said. There was no claim of responsibility, but a string of bombings has hit the capital area since the fighting began at Nahr el-Bared. More than 100 people were reported dead in the 16 days of fighting between the army and Fatah Islam, the worst internal violence since the end of Lebanon’s 1975-90 civil war. After clashes in Nahr el-Bared early in the day, Lebanese artillery resumed pounding Fatah Islam hideouts, sending up plumes of black smoke as more armored vehicles moved into the camp.
TRIPOLI, June 2nd Lebanon – A missile-firing helicopter joined the Lebanese army offensive against al-Qaida-inspired militants on Saturday, the second day of a push against Islamic fighters vowing a fight to the death inside a Palestinian refugee camp. Army tanks shelled militant hideouts in the Nahr el-Bared camp by this northern port city, blasting upper floors of buildings where the militants placed snipers. A Lebanese air force helicopter fired two missiles and strafed militant positions in the first use of airpower since fighting began with the Fatah Islam group on May 20. The air attack was an apparent attempt to block an escape route to the Mediterranean Sea.Four soldiers were killed and 10 wounded Saturday in the offensive aimed at uprooting al-Qaida-inspired gunmen barricaded in the refugee camp.
By BASSEM MROUE, Associated Press Writer, TRIPOLI, Lebanon June 1 – 2007- Under the cover of artillery barrages, dozens of Lebanese army tanks and armored carriers moved toward a Palestinian refugee camp in northern Lebanon Friday in pursuit of Islamic militants holed up inside. The artillery bombardment sent white clouds rising above the Nahr el-Bared camp, where Fatah Islam militants have been hanging on in a 13-day siege by the Lebanese army. The shelling also ignited fires in the camp that spewed black smoke. The militants have barricaded themselves in residential neighborhoods of narrow, winding streets and apartment buildings.
Beirut
BEIRUT daily – star : President Emile Lahoud said Tuesday that he would step down as president in a matter of months and suggested the formation of a six-minister "national salvation government" to carry the country out of its prolonged political deadlock. Lahoud spoke after a lunch meeting with Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir in Bkirki. In a meeting between the leaders described afterward by both as positive, talks centered on the narrowing window of opportunity for the country’s two main political camps to come together ahead of presidential elections scheduled for late September.
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Lebanon’s parliament speaker said on Thursday the UN security council had ignored the country’s constitution in voting to set up a tribunal for suspects in the killing of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri. Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said the Security Council had also ignored a need for Lebanese consensus on the court, which the Council on Wednesday voted to set up in a move forecast to cause more instability in Lebanon.
UNITED NATIONS (AFP) – The UN Security Council on Wednesday voted to set up an international court to try suspects in the murder of Lebanese ex-premier Rafiq Hariri, whose death rocked his country two years ago. The legally binding resolution, which was narrowly approved, sets June 10 as the date on which a 2006 agreement between the UN and the Beirut government to establish the court enters into force.
اجتمع رئيس مجلس الوزراء فؤاد السنيورة امس في السرايا بخلية العمل التي اقيمت في رئاسة مجلس الوزراء لمتابعة ازمة مخيم نهر البارد. وقال امام اعضاء اللجنة "ان هذه الحكومة هي الاولى التي ابدت الاهتمام الفعلي والحقيقي والعميق بالفلسطينيين وسعت من خلال خطة عمل تولتها لجنة الحوار اللبناني الفلسطيني الى الحد من معاناتهم في مخيماتهم ولها انجازات على امتداد عام ونصف عام".
