TRIPOLI, Lebanon, March 18 (UPI) -- The Lebanese Ministry of Information reported Tuesday the security situation in the northern city of Tripoli has deteriorated dramatically.
The ministry's official National News Agency reported several shells were launched and heavy gunfire erupted Tuesday. The Lebanese army was responding to the violence.
The Daily Star newspaper in Beirut reported at least two Lebanese soldiers and one civilian were injured during an exchange of gunfire in Tripoli.
The northern city experienced an uptick in violence last year as pro- and anti-Syrian elements fought one another.
Mostly Sunni rebels complain they've been the target of military operations in Tripoli.
Rifaat Eid, a leader from the pro-Syrian Arab Democratic Party, warned in early November conflict in Tripoli could lead to a national civil war. Members of his party were charged with helping coordinate August bombings in Tripoli said to be the work of Syrian intelligence officials.
Lebanon broke free of Syrian domination with its Cedar Revolution in 2005. Civil war raging in neighboring Syria has threatened to spill over Lebanon's borders.
