Lebanese tanks were out on the streets of Tripoli yesterday after nine people including a boy were killed in sectarian fighting that raged through the night in the northern port city.
Militants from the rival Sunni Muslim and Alawite communities battled with rocket-propelled grenades and automatic weapons in the latest bout of violence to rock the Mediterranean city.
“The army is working for real calm in the north,” an army official said, but added: “Security requires political agreement.”
Lebanon has been hit by sporadic outbreaks of violence despite a power-sharing deal between rival political factions in May that led to the election of Michel Suleiman as president and the creation of a unity Cabinet.
The latest unrest came after the new Cabinet hit snags in deliberations aimed at drawing up a policy agenda ahead of a parliamentary vote of confidence that would enable the government to be officially installed.
The army was on high alert, with tanks and armored vehicles patrolling the streets to keep the peace between fighters in the mainly Sunni Bab al-Tebbaneh district and the neighboring and largely Alawite area of Jabal Mohsen.
Among the dead were a 10-year-old boy and two women, while 50 people were injured in the fighting that first erupted early on Friday, the security official said.
Intense fighting raged through the night despite a ceasefire that went into effect at 3pm on Friday, but by yesterday morning the situation was generally calm.
However, residents of Bab al-Tebbaneh were blocking a motorway to the border with Syria with rocks and tires in protest at the arrest of two fellow inhabitants over the fighting.
Shops in the area were closed and many families who evacuated their homes near the main battle zone were taking refuge in schools.
“The army has sent reinforcements to the battle zones to secure the ceasefire and the army command has promised us to firmly respond to any violation of the ceasefire,” Sunni member of parliament Mohammed Abdel Latif Kabbara of the parliamentary ruling majority said.
Interior Minister Ziad Barud and the head of the internal security forces Ashraf Rifi headed to Tripoli late on Friday to see the situation for themselves and to assess measures to restore calm.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College