The Lebanese military today said it had largely defeated al-Qaida-inspired Islamic militants, over-running their positions inside a Palestinian refugee camp, but gunfire and artillery blasts continued as troops pursued remaining fighters.

Lebanon’s defence minister declared victory over the Fatah Islam militant group, saying it had been crushed after a month-long military assault on its stronghold in a northern refugee camp.

Lebanon’s defence minister said today that a truckload of ammunition belonging to the Hezbollah seized the previous day would be used by the Lebanese army in case of future Israeli attacks.

Lebanon’s defence minister has said he is certain Hezbollah would not break the cease-fire but warned rogue Palestinian groups of harsh measures and a traitor’s fate if they incited Israeli retaliation by launching rockets into the Jewish state.

Lebanon today warned rogue Palestinian groups against inciting Israel to break the fragile Middle East ceasefire by launching rockets into the Jewish state.

Lebanon’s defence minister today warned that any group breaking the ceasefire with Israel would be “decisively dealt with” and considered a traitor.

Israeli commandos have raided a Hezbollah stronghold deep in Lebanon, engaging in a fierce gun battle. The Lebanese government threatened to halt further troop deployments to protest what UN officials called a violation of the six-day-old ceasefire.

Lebanon’s defence minister threatened today to halt the Lebanese army’s deployment in south Lebanon if the United Nations does not intervene after an Israeli commando raid near Baalbek.

Israel has begun thinning out its troops in southern Lebanon and plans to hand over the first of its captured positions to the UN-supported Lebanese army tomorrow, the army said.

Israel has begun slowly pulling out forces from southern Lebanon and made plans to hand over territory today – on the first full day of a tense ceasefire that already has been tested by skirmishes.

A bullet fired in the air during a Ku Klux Klan initiation ceremony came down and struck a participant in the head, critically injuring him.