7 charged for attacks on soldiers

Lebanese Military Prosecutor Judge Sakr Sakr charged seven men Friday, six Lebanese and a Palestinian, with attempting to kill army personnel during recent clashes in north Lebanon. The seven men were charged with shooting at soldiers and attempting to kill them as well as illegal possession of arms. If proven guilty, they could face up to 20 years of imprisonment with hard labor. Sakr referred the men to the military investigate judge and asked for additional warrants to pursue and identify their accomplices. Eleven other gunmen who were arrested were released after it was determined that it could not be established that they had participated in deadly acts of violence. Earlier this month, weeklong clashes in Lebanon's second largest city erupted between two rival districts: Sunni dominated anti-Assad Bab al-Tabbaneh and Alawite majority pro-Assad Jabal Mohsen. In response to the clashes, the city's political and security figures met, agreed to a cease-fire and called for the redeployment of the Army, which in turn implemented a security plan to restore order in Tripoli. On Sunday, troops detained 18 gunmen (11 of whom were later released) and seized quantities of arms, ammunition and military hardware in Al-Zahiriyeh neighborhood, which is adjacent to Bab al-Tabbaneh. Soldiers have also carried out additional raids in search of gunmen and arms in a bid to prevent a renewal of fighting.