Clashes between two families in Halba, northern Lebanon that left one dead and one injured on 25 April 2024. (Courtesy of Michel Hallak/L'Orient Today)
BEIRUT — Two men were shot dead in two separate incidents in northern Lebanon on Thursday. One was killed in Wadi Khaled in Halba, and the second was killed in Tripoli — both incidents were the result of a family dispute, according to L'Orient Today's correspondent in the region.
In the Wadi Khaled shooting, another man, the victim's nephew, was wounded and taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. The specifics of the dispute, which has reportedly been going on for some time and spiraled into a gunfight on Thursday, are unclear and security services have launched an investigation.
In Tripoli, clashes broke out between members of the same family, resulting in one man being shot and killed and another wounded, eyewitnesses told L'Orient Today's correspondent. Both victims were taken to a local hospital. The Lebanese Army made one arrest in relation to the shooting.
Gun violence is a significant security issue in Lebanon, especially in its northern areas, where there is a wide proliferation of firearms. Easy access to firearms in times of tension and anger greatly increases the likelihood of confrontations becoming deadly. Several gunfights have erupted in Akkar over the past few months between members of feuding families.
On March 20, the Lebanese Army arrested 31 people in North Lebanon on suspicion of having committed crimes related to shooting, owning weapons, and causing security issues, following what the army called multiple "incidents" in the region.
On March 14, a dispute between two families took place in Burj al-Arab, provoking gunfire. The next day, a man died in an armed confrontation and riot in Amara, in a dispute over the cutting down of a lemon tree.
Reporting contributed by Michel Hallak