Lebanese armed forces dispatched dozens of vehicles to the Bab al-Tebbaneh and Jabal Mohsen districts in Tripoli Thursday to enforce a cease-fire that killed four in recent gunbattles.
Gunfire broke out late Wednesday and spilled over into the morning hours of Thursday as snipers killed at least two civilians of the Alawite community. Fighting had calmed by daybreak Thursday, however.
Masked gunmen had this week ran through deserted streets dodging gunfire, though rival sides agreed late Wednesday to a cease-fire and allowed national security forces into the city.
Nine people died and over 20 were wounded in fighting in Tripoli in recent weeks as embattled Prime Minister Fuad Siniora struggles to form a unity government amid infighting over the distribution of Cabinet posts.
The internal bickering among Lebanese lawmakers erupted following a May 21 deal between the Shiite Hizballah and the ruling Sunni majority. Siniora said this week he hoped to establish a new government before President Michel Suleiman left for a summit in Paris on Sunday.