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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
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| Lebanese violence reaches Tripoli | Lebanese violence reaches Tripoli |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| Fighting has been reported through the night in the Lebanese city of Tripoli between Hezbollah sympathisers and supporters of the government. | Fighting has been reported through the night in the Lebanese city of Tripoli between Hezbollah sympathisers and supporters of the government. |
| Machine-guns and rocket-propelled grenades are being used and people have been fleeing their homes, correspondents say. | Machine-guns and rocket-propelled grenades are being used and people have been fleeing their homes, correspondents say. |
| Three people died in the northern city on Saturday. | Three people died in the northern city on Saturday. |
| Meanwhile, an uneasy calm has descended on the capital, Beirut, scene of four days of bloody street battles. | Meanwhile, an uneasy calm has descended on the capital, Beirut, scene of four days of bloody street battles. |
| More than 30 people died in those clashes between Hezbollah fighters and government supporters. | More than 30 people died in those clashes between Hezbollah fighters and government supporters. |
| On Saturday, Hezbollah agreed to pull its fighters off the streets of the Muslim western part of the city after the army overturned government measures aimed at curbing the group. | On Saturday, Hezbollah agreed to pull its fighters off the streets of the Muslim western part of the city after the army overturned government measures aimed at curbing the group. |
| Offices burnt | Offices burnt |
| Sunni supporters of the Western-backed government have been fighting members of an Alawite sect loyal to Hezbollah in Tripoli, an unnamed security official told AFP news agency. | Sunni supporters of the Western-backed government have been fighting members of an Alawite sect loyal to Hezbollah in Tripoli, an unnamed security official told AFP news agency. |
| High stakes of Lebanon's crisisIn pictures: Battle for Beirut class="" href="http://newsforums.bbc.co.uk/nol/thread.jspa?forumID=4770&edition=1">Send us your comments | |
| About 7,000 people have fled from the city's Bab al-Tebbaneh district, which marks the front line, the official said. | About 7,000 people have fled from the city's Bab al-Tebbaneh district, which marks the front line, the official said. |
| Earlier, pro-government demonstrators burnt offices of the pro-Syrian Baath Party offices. | Earlier, pro-government demonstrators burnt offices of the pro-Syrian Baath Party offices. |
| They stamped on posters of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. | They stamped on posters of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. |
| They could also be seen throwing furniture and files from the Baath offices and a local opposition politician's office, The Associated Press reports. | They could also be seen throwing furniture and files from the Baath offices and a local opposition politician's office, The Associated Press reports. |
| Face-saving initiative | Face-saving initiative |
| 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. | 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. |
| Hezbollah gunmen have been pulling back in Beirut | Hezbollah gunmen have been pulling back in Beirut |
| The government had moved to shut down Hezbollah's telecoms network and remove the chief of security at Beirut airport for alleged Hezbollah sympathies. | The government had moved to shut down Hezbollah's telecoms network and remove the chief of security at Beirut airport for alleged Hezbollah sympathies. |
| Those decisions triggered a devastating Hezbollah onslaught, the BBC's Jim Muir reports from Beirut | Those decisions triggered a devastating Hezbollah onslaught, the BBC's Jim Muir reports from Beirut |
| The army has essentially shelved both of them. | The army has essentially shelved both of them. |
| 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. | 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. |
| If all goes well, the army initiative should restore calm on the streets and see the international airport reopen. | If all goes well, the army initiative should restore calm on the streets and see the international airport reopen. |
| While it does not address the fundamental political deadlock underlying the eruption of violence, it has created a problem-solving mechanism that may help movement in that direction. | While it does not address the fundamental political deadlock underlying the eruption of violence, it has created a problem-solving mechanism that may help movement in that direction. |
| Our correspondent notes that all parties agree that the army commander, Gen Michel Suleiman, should be Lebanon's next president. | Our correspondent notes that all parties agree that the army commander, Gen Michel Suleiman, should be Lebanon's next president. |