PM Says Tripoli Heading to Stability as Army Implements New Plan

Prime Minister Najib Miqati said Monday the Lebanese army was taking all measures to restore calm in the northern city of Tripoli which witnessed bloody clashes between rival groups in the past week.

In remarks to An Nahar newspaper, Miqati said Tripoli is heading to stability despite the limited violations taking place.

The military is taking all necessary measures to restore order in the city, he said, a day after one man was killed by sniper fire and six others, including three soldiers, were wounded in fresh clashes.

As Safir daily detailed the army’s military-security plan in Tripoli, saying it isolated the areas that witnessed clashes from the rest of neighborhoods in the city.

The army also divided the areas near the confrontation lines to security quarters to control the fighting and prevent a further deterioration in the security situation.

The military leadership has contacted all armed groups and warned them to leave the streets, As Safir added.

Clashes between majority Sunni Bab al-Tabbaneh and the neighborhood of Jabal Mohsen, whose residents are mainly from the Alawite sect of Syrian President Bashar Assad, have left scores of casualties.

The gunbattles were a clear sign that the Syrian crisis has spilled over to Lebanon.

The army said in a communique on Sunday that it arrested 18 gunmen and arrested huge amounts of weapons and ammunition in Tripoli’s al-Zahriyeh district after a patrol came under fire in the area.