This is the moment rival factions fire machine guns in a battle that left two ministerial aides dead after a Lebanese MP’s convoy got caught up in the bloodshed.
The incident happened in the city of Aley located on Mount Lebanon some 15 kilometres (9.3 miles) from Beirut on the main road to Damascus on Sunday.
A convoy of the Lebanon’s Druze minister of state for refugee affairs, Saleh al-Gharib reportedly came under fire in a residential area in a bloodbath which led to the demise of two of his aides.
A video, which circulated on social media platforms, shows men with machine guns firing rounds in the city, which is home to a rival Druze faction.
Al-Gharib, who is a close ally to pro-Syrian minister Talal Arslan, called the incident “an armed ambush and a clear assassination attempt.”
The tensions in the area grew after Lebanon’s foreign minister Gebran Bassil, another Arslan ally, visited the town where he was set to give a political speech, but was cancelled due to protests.
Minister of Education Akram Chehayeb, however, accused al-Gharib’s convoy of the shooting referring to the viral video.
Chehayeb further warned against rising tensions and called for the national good of the homeland, not to cause a civil war.
The incident was soon followed by the blocking of a highway south of the town by Arslan’s supporters through burning tires.
Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri also called on the Druze party leaders as well as Bassil to ease any current tensions between rival factions.
So far, there is no clear evidence of how the clash started.
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Story By: Eman El-Sherbiny, Sub-Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News
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