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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| Lebanese Army to help families of terrorist fighters |
| 2007-08-22 |
| The Lebanese government demonstrated mercy by agreeing to permit the families of the terrorist Fatah al-Islam militia to safely flee the devastated Palestinian refugee camp on Tuesday. The humane gesture comes after the wives and children of the terrorists vowed to fight to the death with their respective husbands and fathers. The request to leave could be a sign of desperation from Fatah al-Islam, indicating that they are nearly eliminated from Nahr al-Bared. The Fatah al-Islam group had asked the Palestinian Clerics' Association late on Monday for help in arranging a ceasefire in the fighting at Nahr al-Bared camp in north Lebanon so their families could leave, an association member said. "The army leadership agreed to the proposal ... to facilitate the departure of the families of the fighters of the Fatah al-Islam organization," the army said in a statement. The army, which has demanded the surrender of the al Qaeda-inspired militants, said it had repeatedly called on the group to let their families leave but did not say when the civilians might be evacuated. Between 40 and 80 civilians, mostly the wives and children of the militants, remain in the camp, Lebanese and Palestinians sources estimate. The camp lies in ruins after tank, artillery and helicopter bombardment. Most of the camp's 40,000 refugees fled early on in the fighting which has killed nearly 300 people, making it Lebanon's worst internal violence since the 1975-1990 civil war. The army said it was not clear how many militants remain in the camp. Sheikh Mohammed al-Haj of the Palestinian Clerics' Association earlier told Reuters he was waiting for the militants to come back with "numbers of civilians fleeing and the time period". A Lebanese soldier was killed in Nahr al-Bared on Tuesday, bringing the army's overall death toll to 141 since the conflict began on May 20, security sources said. At least 100 militants and 42 civilians have also been killed. |
| Posted by:Fred |