LEBANESE PALESTINIAN REFUGEE CAMP: ARMY KILLS CIVILIANS, TERRORISTS USE HUMAN SHIELDS

Lebanon army advances on Islamic militants (MSNBC)
TRIPOLI, Lebanon - Advancing under a blanket of artillery and tank fire, Lebanese troops overran positions held by al-Qaida-inspired militants at a Palestinian refugee camp on Friday, reportedly killing 18 people.

Artillery and machinegun fire shook Nahr el-Bared camp in north Lebanon from early morning to nightfall. At times shells exploded at a rate of 10 a minute. Security sources said at least 16 people were killed, as well as two soldiers, after the fiercest fighting in two weeks.

Elite forces seized three key positions of Fatah Islam militants and destroyed sniper nests on the northern and eastern edges of the camp. A statement posted on a Web site frequently used by al-Qaida urged militants in Lebanon to defend Fatah Islam.

A military statement said some militants had fled the frontline and sought refuge deep in the camp, “taking civilians as human shields.” It called on the militants to surrender.

The army has been battling militants in the camp — many of them foreign fighters — since May 20 in Lebanon’s worst internal violence since the 1975-1990 civil war. At least 84 people — 35 soldiers, 29 militants and 20 civilians — had been killed before Friday.

Security sources said 60 civilians and 18 soldiers were wounded on Friday but could not say whether the 16 who died inside the camp were militants or civilians.