Three people died
overnight in Lebanon's northern city of Tripoli in clashes between supporters and
opponents of Syria's regime, bringing to nine the toll this week, an official
said Saturday.
Sunni and Alawite gunmen
have been fighting in the Bab al-Tebbaneh and Jabal Mohsen districts of Tripoli
since Monday.
Two of the casualties
were Sunnis, said the security official. The third, an Alawite, died after he
and an accomplice on a moped opened fire on an army roadblock and he was hit by
return fire.
Residents of Bab
al-Tebbaneh support the revolt against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, while
those in Jabal Mohsen back Assad. They have fought frequently since the Syrian
conflict erupted in March 2011.
Since the latest
fighting broke out, six Sunnis have died and three Alawites.
The higher Sunni toll is
explained by the fact that Jabal Mohsen overlooks much more densely populated
Bab al-Tebbaneh and because the Alawites are better organised, security sources
say.
The northern port city
is 80 percent Sunni, with Christians and a smaller number of Alawites making up
the balance.
Acting Prime Minister
Najib Mikati said Saturday that “security forces will take every step to put an
end to the violence and chaos” in the city of 200,000. “They will be strict and
impartial.”
A security official said
the army had separated the two sides and pushed them back.
The fighting broke out
Monday while an interview with Assad was being aired on television.
It has prompted
residents to flee the impoverished neighbourhoods, and schools and universities
have been closed in since mid-week.
Lebanon is deeply
divided into pro- and anti-Damascus camps.
The division has widened
since Lebanese Shiite militant group Hezbollah admitted in May it was sending
fighters into Syria to support Assad's troops.
Small radical Sunni
organisations have also sent men across the border to fight alongside the
rebels.
Lebanon was dominated
politically and militarily by Damascus for 30 years until 2005.
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