3 soldiers killed in raid in northern Lebanon

BEIRUT, Lebanon

Three Lebanese soldiers were killed overnight in an attack in the northern city of Tripoli, the army said on Monday.

A Lebanese force came under fire during a raid on the home of a wanted militant in Beddawi, a town about 5 km north of Tripoli, a military statement said.

Another soldier was seriously injured in the attack, the statement said.

Lebanese forces launched a manhunt for the shooters, the statement said, without giving further details.

Local media said the army raid targeted Khaled al-Talawy, a militant who is in the hiding, who is accused by the authorities of involvement in a drive-by shooting in the northern village of Kaftoun, in which three people were killed on Aug. 21.

Following the incident, Lebanese security forces arrested a number of suspects during raids in northern Lebanon.

In recent years, Lebanon suffered a number of attacks and blasts by Daesh/ISIS terrorist group, which is still active in the border area with war-torn Syria.

*Ahmed Asmar contributed to this report from Ankara