Clashes erupted in the old souks of the northern city of Tripoli on Friday evening and continued until Saturday afternoon

Clashes erupted in the old souks of the northern city of Tripoli on Friday evening and continued until Saturday afternoon and resulted in the death of two civilians and two gunmen and the injury of 20 troops and civilians. In the evening, the army said its units completed their deployment in the old souks and the al-Zahriyeh neighborhood after arresting several gunmen and wounding many others. “Quantities of arms, ammunition and explosives were seized in their possession, while a number of militants fled from the area and army units are pursuing them in order to arrest them,” the army added. State-run National News Agency said "an exchange of gunfire erupted between the army and gunmen near al-Walid supermarket in Bab al-Tabbaneh." Cautious calm had engulfed the old souks after a mediation by the Muslim Scholars Committee led to the withdrawal of the militants from the streets, NNA said. But military sources stressed that the army will press on with the battle against the gunmen regardless of “what some parties are trying to do.” In a statement, the army stressed that it will press on with its military operation “until the gunmen are eradicated and all armed appearances are prevented in Tripoli.” It called on citizens to “fully comply with the measures that are being implemented by army units and to report any suspicious behavior to the military posts.” The fighting has resulted in the death of Tripoli residents Abdul Nasser al-Masri and his son Taha and the wounding of six civilians and 13 troops including an officer, according to NNA. A security source had told Agence France-Presse that six militants have been wounded in the battles. The clashes had renewed in the morning after easing off for several hours during the night. The gunbattle initially erupted in the old souks and extended to other areas.