A militant attacked a patrol of Lebanon’s Internal Security Forces (ISF) in the northern city of Tripoli on Monday night, killing two police officers and two army soldiers, state news agency NNA said.

Two security sources told Reuters the police and army have the shooter encircled in a building after he threw a bomb at security forces in a government building and fired at a patrol.

One of the sources said the gunman had been in jail before on charges of belonging to ISIS. The Lebanese military confirmed the attack and the death of the soldier and said the attacker also fired at the security forces center.

Lebanese authorities say they have foiled numerous attacks in recent years, including some tied to the conflict across the border in Syria. From 2013 to 2016, militants struck parts of Lebanon repeatedly with bomb attacks, but officials have since said that security has improved.

Last Update: Wednesday, 20 May 2020 KSA 09:55 - GMT 06:55