HEAVY fighting broke out in Lebanon's central mountains overlooking the capital yesterday, sending echoes of gunfire and explosions across Beirut.
The clashes between pro-government supporters of the Druse leader Walid Jumblatt and Shiite gunmen started in the mountain town of Aytat about noon, involving exchanges of rockets and machine-gun fire. It later spread to the nearby towns of Kayf
oun, Qamatiyeh, Bchamoun and Chouweifat.
There were no initial reports of casualties. Mr Jumblatt called for a halt to the fighting and for the army to take control of the mountains.
The clashes came a day after Hezbollah accused Mr Jumblatt's followers of killing two of their supporters and kidnapping a third.
Beirut, for four days the focus of bloody sectarian clashes between Sunnis and Shiites, was quiet. However, many of its roads remained blocked, including the one to the airport, by the ongoing civil disobedience campaign of the opposition.
Clashes took place overnight in the north of the country, particularly in the port of Tripoli, where pro-government supporters in the Tebaneh neighbourhood exchanged rocket-propelled grenades and heavy machine-gun fire with opposition followers. The clashes were over by morning when the Lebanese army deployed on the streets.
The full article contains 208 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
