Police shot dead notorious Islamist militant Osama Mansour and his partner in the northern city of Tripoli Thursday night during an operation to arrest a radical cleric, a statement said Friday.
"As an ISF Information Branch patrol was trying to arrest Sheikh Khaled Hoblos, who was inside a Kia Picanto driven by Amir al-Kirdi, an Opel with two men inside approached the site, and the person sitting beside the driver opened fire on the patrol, wounding two policemen," the statement said.
It said the 10:25 p.m. shooting in Tripoli's Bab al-Raml neighborhood prompted police to return fire, killing the two men. Hoblos and Kirdi were arrested.
"The dead men turned out to be Osama Mansour and Ahmad al-Nather," the statement said. It identified Mansour as the shooter.
Police said Mansour was wearing an explosive belt. A military expert was called to the scene to defuse the belt, police said.
A security source told The Daily Star Mansour was carrying a fake identity card in the name of Khaled al-Junaidi.
Mansour, who was close to Lebanon's top Islamist fugitive Shadi Mawlawi, was wanted over plotting several attacks against the Army in Tripoli.
He also took part in clashes between the neighborhoods of Bab al-Tabbaneh and Jabal Mohsen.
Mansour and Mawlawi, who remains at large, are believed to have links with Al-Qaeda affiliated Nusra Front.
Hoblos has been pursued by security forces for allegedly orchestrating attacks against the Lebanese Army. The Army has labeled the cleric a "terrorist."
