Lebanon army takes out sniper positions in Fatah al Islam fight

AP/NY Times:

Under the cover of artillery barrages, dozens of Lebanese army tanks and armored carriers moved toward a Palestinian refugee camp in northern Lebanon Friday in pursuit of Islamic militants holed up inside.

The artillery bombardment sent white clouds rising above the Nahr el-Bared camp where Fatah Islam militants have been hanging on in a 13-day siege by the Lebanese army. The shelling also ignited fires in the camp that spewed black smoke. The militants have barricaded themselves in residential neighborhoods of narrow, winding streets and apartment buildings.

About 50 armored carriers, battle tanks and military vehicles from elite units massed at the northern edge of the camp and drove toward the forward-most positions, according to AP Television News crew at the scene.

There was no confirmation that the army units were making a final push to take over the camp, or were just advancing to grab territory and isolate the militants in pockets. But a significant decrease in shelling, accompanied by a rise in machine gun fire from armored carriers and exchanges of automatic rifle fire, suggested the troops were already engaging the militants.

The bombardment intensified several hours later. Lebanese Broadcasting Corp. said troops were attempting to seize the main offices of Fatah Islam in the camp's northeastern area. But Al-Arabiya television said troops seized militant sniper positions.

A resident said some Fatah Islam positions were overtaken and destroyed in the push. He spoke from inside the camp on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.

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Cabinet Minister Ahmed Fatfat told Al-Arabiya television that the army came under sniper fire earlier Friday and decided to respond. ''It seems they have destroyed those positions.''

A soldier on standby in a unit of 10 armored carriers and two tanks on the camp's edge said troops were advancing slowly and fighting building to building, after bombing positions in the morning.

''They are in very well-fortified positions,'' he said of the militants, saying troops were coming under sniper fire. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak with the media.

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A Lebanese soldier was killed by Islamic militants' sniper fire on Thursday.

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The AP buried the lead on this story. The move was in response to a sniper killing a soldier and the armored attack took out the sniper positions of the terrorist group. By doing so, the army got more control over the battle space and reduced the ability of the terrorist to impede army movement around the siege area. The army may have also learned somethings about the enemy defenses that will be useful in a final assault.