2 families clash in Beirut’s southern suburbs

Three people were wounded Thursday in a brief armed clash in Haret Hreik, in Beirut’s southern suburbs, security sources told The Daily Star. They said the 20-minute clash pitted members of the Karaki family, which hails from south Lebanon, against members from the Miqdad clan, originally from Baalbek. They clashed with automatic machine guns and pistols, said sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity. They identified the wounded as Issa Ali Karaki, who was taken to the local Bahman Hospital in critical condition, Fatmeh Farhat, 37, who was standing on her balcony and 5-year-old Jad Jammoul, who happened to be passing by on the street.The sources said the clash appeared to be over a family dispute. But Ghazi Miqdad told the National News Agency during a phone conversation that the Miqdad family was not involved in the clash. According to Miqdad, the dispute was between two brothers from the Ghassin family who live in rented apartments in the neighborhood and members of Karaki family, which owns residences. Miqdad added that his family had contacted the Army leadership and called for the departure of the Ghassin family from the neighborhood “due to the disputes they constantly provoke.”