Lebanese soldier dies after clashes with Palestinians

Mustapha Khaled died in hospital in the village of Jeb Janine, in southeast Lebanon, they said.

After news of his death, several hundred Lebanese residents of the region held a protest march near the Syrian border, charging that the guerrillas were "mercenaries" who served Israeli interests.

"We will not accept that the national army be attacked by mercenaries from the Fatah-Intifada or the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command (PFLP-GC) whose actions have always served Israeli interests," said the mayor of the village of Sawira, Zaher al-Smayli on Friday.

Khaled was wounded during an exchange of fire on Wednesday between army troops and guerrillas from the Damascus-based Fatah-Intifada which is led by radical militant Abu Mussa.

A Palestinian source said two Abu Mussa fighters were wounded in the clashes and taken to Syria for treatment.

Overnight Wednesday, Abu Mussa militants sent troops and military vehicles from Syria into eastern Lebanon while the Lebanese army dispatched more reinforcements to the area, police sources told AFP.

A number of armed pro-Syrian Palestinian groups maintain bases in Lebanon, where an estimated 400,000 Palestinian refugees live.

On Tuesday, Lebanese leaders held a new round of reconciliation talks which reached an agreement in April on a number of contentious issues, including the dismantling of Palestinian bases in Lebanon within six months.

The army last summer cordoned off Palestinian bases in eastern Lebanon for a month after an army topographer was killed by shots fired from Abu Mussa bases.

In January, two Lebanese policemen were wounded while on patrol near a base of the PFLP-GC, another Damascus-based group.

Syria, which backs several radical factions with bases in Lebanon, withdrew its troops from its smaller neighbor last year after a 29-year military presence and political domination.

On Wednesday, the UN Security Council approved Resolution 1680 which reinforced calls for the pullout of all foreign forces from Lebanon, the disbanding and disarmament of all militias, and deployment of the Lebanese army throughout the country.

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