1 killed in Tripoli sniper fire

One person was killed on Friday and three others were wounded by gunfire in a pro-Syrian regime neighbourhood of the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli, a security official said.He said the man who died was killed by sniper fire in the port city's mainly Alawite district of Jabal Mohsen, which faces the majority Sunni neighbourhood of Bab al-Tebbaneh whose residents are opposed to the Syrian regime. The security official said gunfire between the two neighbourhoods erupted after the shooting, prompting the army to intervene. Three people were wounded in the shootout. There were conflicting reports on how the shooting started. Clashes between the pro- and anti-Syrian regime neighbourhoods last week left 14 people dead and 48 wounded, sparking fears of a spillover of the conflict in neighbouring Syria. Sectarian violence has flared several times in Tripoli since the revolt broke out in Syria in March of last year, including street battles in May that left 10 dead. Bab al-Tebbaneh and Jabal Mohsen have been gripped by frequent fighting, reflecting a split between Lebanon's parties where the opposition backs the revolt in Syria while a ruling coalition led by the powerful militant group Hezbollah supports the Damascus regime.