Lebanon Continues Fight Against Fatah al Islam

The Lebanese military has been slugging it out with Fatah al Islam for about six weeks now, and there's no sign of a letup.

Nahr Al-Bared - Lebanese heavy artillery pounded a refugee camp relentlessly on Thursday in what could signal the start of a massive final assault against al-Qaeda-inspired Islamist fighters holed up there for weeks.

Vast clouds of black smoke billowed into the sky over the Nahr al-Bared camp as shells slammed into the ruins of the shantytown where Fatah al-Islam militiamen have been locked in a deadly standoff with the army since May 20.

"Today's bombardment is a first step in the final battle against the terrorist group whose fighters have refused to surrender to the army," an army officer at the scene said.

As the fierce battle raged, two soldiers fell in an ambush by Sunni Muslim gunmen on the edge of the southern sector of Nahr al-Bared, a medical source told AFP.

Their deaths brought to 176 the number of people killed, including 88 soldiers and at least 68 Islamists, since the fighting at Nahr al-Bared and the neighbouring Mediterranean port city of Tripoli first broke out.

The latest bombardment comes on the first anniversary of the devastating war between Israel and the Shi'ite militia Hezbollah which killed more than 1 200 people in Lebanon alone.

Military reinforcements were brought in overnight after more than 150 people, mostly Palestinian militants, fled the camp on Wednesday amid signs the army was readying for a final assault against the die-hard Islamists.

That last bit is troubling. If these militants escaped, that means that they're likely to continue the fight elsewhere in Lebanon.