Lebanese national victory

Army defeats extremists linked to al-Qaeda

Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad al-Siniora announced the complete victory of the Lebanese army over militants from the extremist group Fatah al-Islam, who were hiding in the Nahr al-Barid Palestinian refugee camp, 16 km north of the Lebanese city of Tripoli. "This is Lebanon's greatest national victory over the terrorists who sought to plunge our country into chaos, destruction and tragedy," the Lebanese prime minister said yesterday.

A statement issued yesterday by the Russian Foreign Ministry said that Moscow welcomes the completion of the counter-terrorism operation in Lebanon and expresses hope that the situation in the country will normalize. During Sunday's operation, the Lebanese army lost five people, 35 militants were killed, and 25 surrendered. Clashes between the army and Fatah al-Islam militants began on May 20. Then the troops and police, sent to search for the militants who robbed the bank, were attacked by 360 terrorists who had taken refuge in Nahr al-Barida.

Government troops surrounded the camp in large forces and tried to storm it several times. During the siege of the camp, 157 Lebanese soldiers, 131 terrorists and 42 civilians were killed. Most of the 40,000 population of Nahr al-Barid fled the camp in the first days of fighting. Currently, demining work is underway on the territory of the camp, which was almost completely destroyed as a result of three months of artillery shelling.

The leader of the extremist organization Fatah al-Islam, Palestinian Shakir al-Absi, was killed. His corpse was identified by representatives of the Union of Palestinian Ulema Theologians. His identity will be finally established through genetic testing. A blood test was taken from al-Absi's daughter to compare DNA with samples from the dead man.

In Lebanon, they believe that the international terrorist organization Al-Qaeda is behind the radical Fatah al-Islam group. Al-Absi’s “track record”, which has more than once publicly expressed sympathy for Osama Bin Laden, indicates a connection with her. Before moving to Lebanon, al-Absi fought with the Americans in Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2004, he was sentenced to death in absentia in Jordan for the 2002 murder of American diplomat Lawrence Foley. A little later he was arrested in Syria, which, however, did not extradite him to the Jordanians. The militant spent more than a year in a Syrian prison. After his release, he moved to Lebanon in the fall of 2006.

Another militant leader, Abu Salim Taha, al-Absi's right-hand man, disappeared from Nahr al-Barida. He was not found among the prisoners or among the dead. The Lebanese military suspects that he and a group of terrorists managed to escape from encirclement and took refuge in the nearby Baddawi Palestinian refugee camp. To prevent armed attacks by Islamists, a curfew has been introduced there.

Victor VOLODIN