Northern Clashes Continue, LA Warns Militants

Local Editor

At least five Lebanese were killed and 25 wounded in the recent clashes between Jabal Mohsen and in Bab al-Tabbaneh in the Northern capital, Tripoli.

The renewed violence is the seventh round of fighting to erupt between the two neighborhoods since the beginning of the Syrian crisis. The new conflict started after several Salafists were killed after infiltrating into Syria to join the Syrian rebels.

The conflict developed into intense fighting in the afternoon and evening. The Lebanese Army responded by beefing up its presence and responding to sources of gunfire.
Fighting in the Tripoli neighborhoods intensified in the recent hours with gunmen exchanging rocket-propelled grenades.

Among the dead are: Mohammad Ibrahim from Jabal Mohsen, and Abdel-Rahman Nassouh and Khaled Mustafa from Bab al-Tabbaneh.
Meanwhile, sniper fire made the highway connecting Tripoli to Akkar inaccessible, and bullets reached the Zahrieh neighborhood, which is some distance from the fighting.
Rival gunmen built sandbag barriers on both sides of Syria Street, which separates the two neighborhoods, in an act that is repeated with every new wave of violence.
In this context, the "Democratic Arab Party" political relations official Rifat Eid stressed that "the problem in Tripoli now lies in the fact that the late ISF official Wissam al-Hassan armed the fighters in al-Tabbaneh then died."

In an interview with as-Safir Lebanese newspaper, Eid highlighted that "things become undisciplined after his death, because he who controlled the insurgents passed away. Things got mixed now."
"The Democratic Arab Party's response to the fire sources is limited to the cases when the LA is unable to interfere," he declared.
However, he noted that "when the LA is acting, we are performing the highest levels of self-restraint."
"What is the relationship between Jabal Mohsen Tal Kalakh's ambush, so that we turned to a place for avenging the death?" Eid wondered.
He further concluded that " if there is someone that the families of the victims must blame, then it is Saad Hariri and Okab Saqr because they bear the responsibility for inciting and arming their children."

This came as the Lebanese Army [LA] warned that it would respond to sources of gunfire from any side.
"The Army Command warns the gunmen against going too far in tampering with the security and stability of the city, and stresses that it will strictly respond to sources of gunfire from any side," the LA said in its statement.
Moreover, it urged Tripoli's residents to fully cooperate with measures taken by the Army to preserve their security.
"The LA units responded to sources of gunfire with suitable weapons," the Army said, adding that it erected checkpoints and continues to organize patrols, raid areas where there is gunfire and boost its presence in tense areas.

Similarly, Prime Minister Najib Mikati urged residents of Tripoli to stay calm and be wary of rumors and attempts to stoke tension and spread violence elsewhere in the city.
"The LA and Internal Security Forces have taken all the appropriate measures to restore security and prevent any attempt to spark strife in Tripoli," he said.
In parallel, President Michel Suleiman followed up on the security situation in the north with relevant officials. He was briefed by Army Commander Gen. Jean Qahwagi on measures to control the security situation there and to prevent arms smuggling in order to preserve stability and civil peace.

Source: Agencies/ Dailies, Translated and Edited by moqawama.org