Report: Clashes along Lebanon-Syria Border
Syrian security forces infiltrated the Bekaa border town of al-Qaa on Tuesday, said various media reports.
Local residents said that clashes ensued between the forces and members of the Syrian opposition.
Two Lebanese officials, one from the police and another from the military, however denied to the Associated Press that the Syrian troops had entered Lebanon.
They stated that the clashes on the Syrian side of the border started on Tuesday in al-Qaa area, adding that bullets struck the Lebanese side of the border.
The National News Agency confirmed the security reports denying the Syrian infiltration, stressing that the Lebanese army had deployed along the border in anticipation of any security development.
It added however that a Lebanese citizen was wounded by a stray bullet from Syria as a result of the clashes taking place along the Syrian side of the border.
Earlier on Tuesday, MTV reported that the Syrian troops had fired rockets towards al-Qaa, forcing residents to take shelter in their homes.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that fierce clashes erupted between Syrian regime forces and rebel troops near the border with Lebanon.
Rami Abdul Rahman, head of the Britain-based group, confirmed that the clashes were taking place in al-Qaa region.
There were no immediate reports of casualties.
A resident on the Lebanese side of the border told AFP the clashes were taking place inside Syrian territory.
"We can hear gunfire and explosions," he said.
On Thursday, A Lebanese security official and residents told Agence France Presse that Syrian troops had fired rocket propelled grenades into northern Lebanon during the night, sparking panic among the local population.
The security official said heavy machinegun fire followed by shelling erupted at around 9:00 pm (1900 GMT) from the Syrian side of the border, near the Lebanese village of Muqaybleh, prompting some residents to flee.
He said at least two rockets fell inside Lebanese territory.
Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour later denied that the Syrian army had shelled Lebanese border areas, noting that it might have been “pursuing armed men.”
“There are no Syrian violations against Lebanese sovereignty, but rather military operations, and I don’t believe that the Syrian army is shelling Lebanese areas and the (Lebanese) army has not recorded any such incident,” Mansour told MTV.
Thousands of Syrians have fled to Lebanon since a revolt against the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad broke out in March last year.
Syria has mined several regions along the porous border to prevent the smuggling of weapons and infiltration of rebel fighters, activists say.
At least three people have been killed since October and several have been wounded when Syrian troops, staging incursions into Lebanon, opened fire on border villages.
Lebanon and Syria share a 330-kilometer border but have yet to agree on official demarcation.
Source: Agence France Presse, Naharnet
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