Seven shot dead in Beirut conflict

Seven people have been shot dead in Beirut as violence continues to grip the country.

According to opposition sources, at least five of those killed were supporters of the pro-Syrian opposition.

The opposition has been locked in a power struggle for more than a year with the Western-backed government of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora.

The conflict has fuelled tensions between Shi'ite Muslims loyal to the opposition and Sunni followers of Saad al-Hariri, who leads the governing coalition.

The violence escalated after an activist from the Amal movement was shot dead when the army moved to break up a demonstration against power cuts.

The army had fired in the air to disperse the initial protest. It said it was investigating who was behind the shooting, which it said killed two people.

Amal, led by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, called on its followers to halt the protests, saying: "We have no link to this action. We call on people not to react. We call on them to pull out of the streets."

Arab foreign ministers met in Cairo to review Arab League efforts to mediate an end to the political conflict, which has left Lebanon without a president since November.

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