Israeli Army unit escapes grenade raid near Beirut

An Israeli Army patrol escaped a rocket-launched grenade attack in this mainly Muslim town south of Beirut Tuesday and killed one of three assailants in a hail of gunfire.

Eyewitnesses said one Israeli was wounded. The man killed was identified as an ethnic Kurd from Turkey, possibly fighting on behalf of the Palestine Liberation Organization or a leftist group.

In a separate report, fierce fighting erupted Tuesday between Lebanese Christians and Muslims southeast of Beirut, prompting Israel to rush 50 armored personnel carriers and tanks and more than 500 soldiers to the area to quell the strife. The Israelis imposed a curfew and cut off all traffic between the Shouf villages.