The Al Qaida agents were said to belong to the group, Fatah Al Islam.
Officials said Fatah Al Islam contained Palestinian and other operatives who
were trained and financed by Syria and fought against the U.S.-led coalition
in Iraq.
Officials said the Lebanese Army has sent reinforcement to the Naher
Bared refugee camp near Tripoli. They said the operation was meant to
capture Syrian-sponsored Al Qaida operatives alleged to have participated in
a campaign to topple the government of Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Siniora.
"There are suspects in the camp and the army has been ordered to capture
them," a Lebanese security source said.
Fatah Al Islam, regarded as a splinter of Fatah Al Intifida, has been
accused by Lebanese authorities of conducting a Syrian-sponsored campaign to
topple the Siniora government. Officials said the group bombed two
Lebanese buses north of Beirut in February and plotted to attack Western
diplomats and installations.
"Any individuals belonging to either Fatah Al Intifada or Fatah Al Islam
who are wanted by the judiciary will be detained by the army if they leave
the camp," a Defense Ministry source told Beirut-based Daily Star.
[On March 19, a gunbattle erupted between Fatah Al Islam and Fatah
Uprising in Naher Bared. Five people, one of whom died on Tuesday, were said
to have been injured in the camp, with a population of 30,000.]
The Palestine Liberation Organization and its dominant movement, Fatah,
has disavowed any connection to Fatah Al Islam. On March 17, Brig. Gen.
Jibril Rajoub, a security adviser to Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud
Abbas, said Fatah Al Islam "has nothing to do with the Palestinian cause and
does not serve the cause."
"The resistance should only be in Palestine and nowhere else," Rajoub
said.
So far, Lebanese authorities have captured four Fatah Al Islam members
suspected of the twin bus bombings in Ain Alaq on Feb. 13. Officials said
the detainees also plotted to strike Italian embassy, Western residences and
opposition targets.
Fatah Al Islam has been led by Shaber Absi. Absi, who on March 17 led a
march through Naher Bared, has been wanted by several Arab states for Al
Qaida-aligned insurgency activities.
"If an offensive is launched against us, our response will be fierce,"
Absi, who has denied a link to Al Qaida, said.
