Palestinians Refuse Assir's Call To Join Battle in Sidon - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Lebanese army soldiers arrest supporters of hardline Sunni cleric Sheikh Ahmed al-Assir in Abra near Sidon, southern Lebanon, June 24, 2013. Lebanese soldiers stormed a complex holding gunmen loyal to a radical Islamist cleric in the city of Sidon on Monday and arrested dozens of his supporters, security sources said, in a second day of clashes fuelled by neighbouring Syria's civil war. REUTERS/Ali Hashisho (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX10ZBT

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Lebanese army soldiers arrest supporters of hardline Sunni cleric Sheikh Ahmed al-Assir in Abra near Sidon, southern Lebanon, June 24, 2013. Lebanese soldiers stormed a complex holding gunmen loyal to a radical Islamist cleric in the city of Sidon on Monday and arrested dozens of his supporters, security sources said, in a second day of clashes fuelled by neighbouring Syria's civil war. REUTERS/Ali Hashisho (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX10ZBT

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A Lebanese army soldier stands atop of an armoured personnel carrier (APC) as he patrols the area near the mosque complex where hardline Sunni cleric Sheikh Ahmed al-Assir was believed to be sheltering with his supporters, in Abra near Sidon, southern Lebanon June 25, 2013. The Lebanese government will try on Tuesday to secure the country after the deadliest violence since the start of a two-year conflict in neighbouring Syria that has pushed Lebanon's myriad militia to clashes. Gunfights between the army a

Lebanon Threatened by Civil War

Nasser Chararah

Nasser Chararah

A Sunni Muslim gunman fires his weapon expressing his support with Salafist leader Ahmad al-Assir in Tripoli, northern Lebanon, June 23, 2013. At least three Lebanese soldiers were killed in the coastal city of Sidon on Sunday in clashes with followers of a Sunni Islamist cleric who is a fierce critic of Hezbollah's military intervention in neighbouring Syria, a security official said. Sources in the city said the fighting broke out when a follower of Sheikh Ahmed al-Assir was arrested at an army roadblock

No Secret Deal Behind Assir’s Escape

Nasser Chararah

Nasser Chararah

Lebanese army soldiers point their weapons during clashes with gunmen of hardline Sunni Muslim cleric Sheikh Ahmed al-Assir, in Abra near Sidon, southern Lebanon, June 24, 2013. Lebanese soldiers fought Sunni Muslim gunmen in the southern city of Sidon on Monday in one of the deadliest outbreaks of violence fuelled by sectarian divisions over the civil war in neighbouring Syria. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST MILITARY) - RTX10YUO

Sheikh Al-Assir's Militants Kill Lebanese Soldiers in Sidon

Jean Aziz (Lebanon Pulse)

Jean Aziz (Lebanon Pulse)

Lebanese army soldiers are seen through a shattered car window as they secure the area near a mosque complex, where hardline Sunni cleric Sheikh Ahmed al-Assir was believed to be sheltering with his supporters, in Abra near Sidon, southern Lebanon, June 25, 2013. The Lebanese government will try on Tuesday to secure the country after the deadliest violence since the start of a two-year conflict in neighbouring Syria that has pushed Lebanon's myriad militia to clashes.Gunfights between the army and Sunni Mus

Sidon: another Lebanese flashpoint

Esperance Ghanem

Esperance Ghanem