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Fighting spreads east of Beirut Hezbollah rocks eastern villages
(about 1 hour later)
Fighting between rival militias in Lebanon has spread to the mainly Druze mountains just south of Beirut. Control of several villages loyal to Lebanon's pro-government Druze leader Walid Jumblatt has been handed to the army after an attack by Hezbollah.
Hezbollah and its anti-government allies, using heavy weapons and small arms, attacked areas held by followers of Druze leader Walid Jumblatt. The group's fighters used heavy weapons and small arms to attack the mountain settlements south-east of Beirut.
After several hours of fighting, the army was deployed in the area and a ceasefire announced. A truce was called after the Druze capitulated to avoid bloodshed, a BBC correspondent reports.
The latest violence followed battles in Beirut and in Lebanon's second city, Tripoli, in the north. It follows four days of fighting in which Hezbollah stormed west Beirut, raising fears of a return to civil war.
It is the latest phase in the campaign, spearheaded by Hezbollah, to crush the pillars of support for the government, says the BBC's Jim Muir in Beirut. The clashes have pitched the Syrian-backed Shia Islamist movement Hezbollah and its allies against the governing Western-backed Sunni, Christian and Druze alliance.
The violence has triggered fears of a return to Lebanon's 1975-1990 civil war. Beirut was quiet on Sunday, after control of areas seized by Hezbollah was handed to the Lebanese army, but clashes took place overnight in Lebanon's second city, Tripoli.
Arab foreign ministers meeting in Cairo have urged an immediate halt to the fighting in Lebanon and agreed to send a ministerial delegation to Beirut to try to mediate an end to the crisis.
Druze appealDruze appeal
In the mountainous Druze stronghold east of Beirut on Sunday, gunmen supporting the Western-backed government clashed with militants allied to the Hezbollah-led opposition. The BBC's Jim Muir in Beirut reports that Sunday's battle began in earnest after some skirmishing and provocations, with a string of Druze villages caught in a barrage of fire.
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The BBC's Jeremy Bowen runs for cover as shots are fired at him and his crewThe BBC's Jeremy Bowen runs for cover as shots are fired at him and his crew
Pro-government Druze leader Walid Jumblatt appealed for calm, calling on his main Druze opponent - the Hezbollah-allied Talal Arslan - to negotiate an end to the violence and allow Lebanon's army to deploy throughout the hills. Mr Jumblatt knew Hezbollah, by far the strongest power in the land, could easily storm his entire mountain enclave, so he asked a Druze rival allied to Hezbollah to broker a deal to hand the whole area over to the Lebanese army, he adds.
"I tell my supporters that civil peace, coexistence and stopping war and destruction are more important than any other consideration," Mr Jumblatt told the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation."I tell my supporters that civil peace, coexistence and stopping war and destruction are more important than any other consideration," Mr Jumblatt told the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation.
Earlier this week, Hezbollah fighters defeated pro-government forces in western Beirut. A ceasefire was arranged, and it seems to be generally holding, our correspondent says.
On Saturday Hezbollah agreed to pull out its fighters after the army overturned government measures aimed at curbing the group. The army is also filling the vacuum in west Beirut since Hezbollah's withdrawal on Saturday.
But many roads remain blocked, including the airport road, as the Iranian-backed Shia group continues its campaign of civil disobedience. Violence erupted in Beirut after the government moved to shut down Hezbollah's telecoms network and remove the chief of security at Beirut airport for alleged sympathies with Hezbollah.
Burning buildings The group's leader, Hassan Nasrallah, called the move a "declaration of war".
Arab foreign ministers are currently holding an emergency meeting on the crisis in the Egyptian capital Cairo. But the army, which correspondents say remains trusted by most of Lebanon's competing political factions, overturned both measures after Hezbollah gunmen seized control of swathes of the city.
In Tripoli, Sunni supporters of the government have reportedly been fighting members of an Alawite sect loyal to Hezbollah with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades. On Sunday many roads in the capital remained blocked, including the airport road, as the Shia group continued a campaign of civil disobedience.
In Tripoli, Sunni supporters of the government have reportedly been fighting members of an Alawite sect loyal to Hezbollah with machine-guns and rocket-propelled grenades.
At least one person was killed over the weekend and thousands are believed to have fled their homes.
Stalemate
For the past 16 months, Lebanon has been locked in political stalemate between the ruling coalition and Hezbollah-led opposition over the make-up of the government.
High stakes of Lebanon's crisisIn pictures: Battle for BeirutSend us your commentsHigh stakes of Lebanon's crisisIn pictures: Battle for BeirutSend us your comments
About 7,000 people have fled from the city's Bab al-Tebbaneh district, which marks the front line, reports said. The country has been without a president since late 2007, although there is general consensus that the head of the army, Gen Michel Suleiman, would make the best compromise candidate.
Earlier, pro-government demonstrators burned the offices of the pro-Syrian Baath Party. The Arab League delegation agreed on in Cairo will be led by the Qatari Foreign Minister, Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem.
They stamped on posters of Syrian President Bashar Assad and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. Ministers also decided to give what they describe as logistical support to the Lebanese army to help it maintain security.
They could also be seen throwing furniture and files from the Baath offices and a local opposition politician's office. The delegation's mediation mission will not be easy, the BBC's Heba Saleh reports.
The confrontation in Beirut eased off after the army offered a face-saving compromise that allowed the government to back down from two controversial decisions. An existing Arab League initiative aimed at facilitating the election of a Lebanese president has been deadlocked for months and Syria, a key Hezbollah ally, stayed away from Sunday's meeting.
The government had moved to shut down Hezbollah's telecoms network and remove the chief of security at Beirut airport for alleged sympathies with the guerrillas. The fighting in Lebanon is seen as a disaster by pro-Western Arab countries such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia, which are concerned about the influence of Hezbollah's other ally Iran, our correspondent adds.
The army has essentially shelved both measures after they triggered a devastating Hezbollah onslaught. Lebanon was plunged into civil war from 1975-90, drawing in Syria and Israel, the two regional powers.
Managing to retain its unity and the respect of both sides, the army has emerged as the arbiter in the current crisis, our correspondent says.
For the past 16 months, Lebanon has locked in political stalemate between the ruling coalition and Hezbollah-led opposition over the make-up of the government.
The country has been without a president since late 2007, although there is general consensus that the head of the army, Gen Michel Sleiman, would make the best compromise candidate.