The Lebanese military said the ceasefire was broken by the Islamic militants, who opened fire at soldiers surrounding the  Palestinian refugee camp of Nahr al-Bared. The army retaliated and another fierce gunbattle erupted.
 
A soldier was previously killed during desultory fire, as the armed conflict in the region doesn’t seem to come to an end pretty soon. Thousands of Palestinians fled the settlement since the clashes started more than a week ago, 78 persons being killed by bullets flying from each side. Among them, 32 were Lebanese soldiers.

Negotiations took place every day, but a conclusive peace plan failed to appear because the extremists inside the camp announced they will not surrender under any circumstances and will die for their cause.

The Lebanese government threatened it will oust the “terrorist element” even with the price of civilian casualties, but the camp is completely under Palestinian control, as an old treaty forbids Lebanese troops to enter the Nahr al-Bared settlement.

Fatah al-Islam is a Sunni Arab Islamist militant group that is believed to have ties with al-Qaeda and is responsible for several bombings in Lebanon aside from the conflict with the Lebanese military.

Beirut authorities have accused Syria of standing behind the militants, who are in fact a cover for Syrian intelligence operating in Lebanon. The members come from different countries like Syria, Saudi Arabia and Jordan, many perceiving the faction as a mercenary group.