President Michel Aoun on Wednesday vowed that the state will implement developmental projects in eastern border areas liberated by the army from the hands of the Islamic State group.

Marada Movement official and ex-minister Youssef Saade has visited Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea in Maarab and talks between the two men tackled the course of the relation between Marada and the LF in addition to important political issues, media reports said.

Prime Minister Saad Hariri on Wednesday inspected military units deployed in the eastern border town of Ras Baalbek, where he stressed the need to boost the army's capabilities so that it becomes the sole defender of Lebanon.

Armed clashes intensified Wednesday morning in the Palestinian refugee camp of Ain el-Hilweh, as Islamist militants reportedly threatened to shell the city of Sidon to alleviate the assault that they are facing.

Armed clashes intensified Tuesday afternoon in the Palestinian refugee camp of Ain el-Hilweh in the southern city of Sidon, state-run National News Agency reported.

The so-called emir of the Islamic State group in Lebanon’s eastern border region, Mouwaffaq Abu al-Sous, is seeking a mediation that would secure the withdrawal of his embattled militants from the outskirts of Ras Baalbek and al-Qaa to Syria's Deir Ezzor, a media report said on Tuesday.

The members of the International Support Group (ISG) for Lebanon said in a statement Tuesday that they “commend the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) in their efforts to combat terrorism and to shield Lebanon’s territorial integrity and security.”

The Lebanese army announced Tuesday that it has launched the third phase of a broad offensive to capture areas controlled by the terrorist Islamic State group on the border with Syria.

A bomb exploded early on Monday at the southern Palestinian refugee camp of Ain el-Hilweh, breaching a ceasefire agreement reached a day earlier, as clashes resumed between the secular Fatah Movement and members of two small Islamist groups.

The intersection at the vegetable market-al-Tiri in al-Fawqani street witnessed sniper shooting and bomb explosions, added the agency.

The French Embassy in Lebanon on Monday expressed “utmost admiration and support for the Lebanese army in its battle against the Islamic State group.”