Lebanon Army Storms Militant Posts at Camp, 18 [Civilians?] Die

Tweet "NAHR AL-BARED, Lebanon (Reuters) - Tank-led Lebanese troops overran several positions of al Qaeda-inspired militants at a Palestinian refugee camp in north Lebanon on Friday, and 18 people were killed in the fiercest fighting in two weeks.

"Security sources said at least 16 people were killed inside Nahr al-Bared camp as well as two soldiers. They said 60 civilians and 18 soldiers were wounded but could not say whether the 14 who died inside the camp were militants or civilians.

"Advancing under a blanket of artillery and tank fire, elite forces seized key positions of Fatah al-Islam militants and destroyed sniper nests on the northern and eastern edges of Nahr al-Bared while artillery batteries pounded the camp.

"A Fatah al-Islam source confirmed the group had lost some positions and suffered two dead. Palestinian sources inside the camp said there was widescale destruction in civilian areas.
A military statement said some militants had fled the frontline and sought refuge deep in the camp, "taking civilians as human shields." It called on the militants to surrender.

"The army has been battling militants in the camp -- many of them foreign fighters -- since May 20 in Lebanon's worst internal violence since the 1975-1990 civil war. At least 84 people -- 35 soldiers, 29 militants and 20 civilians -- had been killed before Friday.

"Artillery and machinegun fire shook the camp from early morning. At times 155 mm shells exploded at a rate of 10 a minute and smoke billowed from buildings inside as fires raged.