Lebanese army resumes bombardment of Islamic militants

Lebanese troops resumed bombardment of al-Qaida-inspired militants entrenched in a Palestinian refugee camp in northern Lebanon today.

Troops pounded the remaining suspected hideouts of Fatah Islam fighters in Nahr el-Bared near Tripoli with artillery and tank fire in a bombardment that sent plumes of black smoke rising in the air over the refugee camp’s bullet-punctured buildings.

Holed up deep inside the camp, Fatah Islam gunmen responded with heavy fire today, soldiers said.

“They shot back with rocket-propelled grenades and machine-guns,” said a soldier sitting in a military jeep a few hundreds yards from the camp.

The army had reported four soldiers died in yesterday’s fighting, but a senior military official raised the death toll to six today.