According to the JP, Wapo, Reuters, and the AFP to name just a small fraction of who is reporting on this, the Lebanese Army beat back the Al-Qaeda inspired group of Fatah Islam fighters in the Nahr el-Bared camp, which had been held for three months.
Unfortunately Shaker al-Abssi, the leader if the group that is linked to Bin Laden's al-Qaeda group by ideology, escaped capture.
The Lebanese Army killed 32 members of the group and captured at least 15 others.
Celebratory gunfire erupted in nearby villages as soon as the news spread. Dozens of residents took to the streets of Mohammara, waving Lebanese flags and honking their horns as troop convoys poured into the area with soldiers flashing victory signs.
The army, which said it lost five soldiers in the recent violence, was not ready to formally declare an end to fighting in the camp, large parts of which have been destroyed by army bombardments in the monthslong siege. The military said three soldiers were killed in Sunday's fighting and two on Saturday, raising to 158 the total number of troops killed in the conflict.
A military statement early Sunday said troops were attacking the remaining militant strongholds inside Nahr el-Bared and "chasing the fugitives outside the camp" who had staged "a desperate attempt to flee." It called on Lebanese citizens to inform the nearest army patrol of any suspected militants in their area, but gave no specifics on casualties except saying "a large number" had been killed or captured.
From the AFP:
Local residents meanwhile gathered on the outskirts of the camp cheering at the soldiers and flashing the victory sign.
"We hope that this nightmare ends today," said Rakfat Mubayed. "We are thrilled that the army is now finishing off with this gang of terrorists and criminals."
Several people described seeing soldiers hunt down and capture some of the militants in the village of Muhammara, some two kilometres (a little over a mile) east of the camp.
"At 6:00 am (0300 GMT) I saw troops seize four bearded men dressed in black and kill three others they had surrounded in a lemon grove," said Mohammed Ahmed Hafza, 18, a farmer.
The fighting around the camp has been Lebanon's worst internal violence since the 1975-1990 civil war.
This is a significant win for the Lebanese Army and government who has been under fire from groups like this as well as Hizbullah in recent months that have been trying to take the government from Prime Minister Fouad Siniora.
All throughout the Middle East, al-Qaeda linked groups are being beaten back, captured and killed as villages and citizens in different countries have turned against them and their bloodthirsty ways.
No longer are people cowering in fear from them, they are now arming themselves, tipping off authorities and turning them in.
We will see al-Qaeda committing "spectacular" attacks where they can successfully because the news of such attacks gets spread far and wide and to them that encourages them to continue, but we are seeing more news of their losses now than their success, which has them acting in desperation rather than well thought out, planned attacks and, as we have seen in recent months, many of those attacks have been foiled or have simply failed.
Congratulations to the Lebanese Army on this victory, may you see more and more of them in the coming months.
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