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On May 9, heavy fighting broke out in [[Mount Lebanon]] between pro-government [[Progressive Socialist Party]] fighters and [[Hezbollah]]. The clashes started in [[Aytat]], near [[Kaifun]] and soon expanded to cover many spots in [[Mount Lebanon]] including the cities of [[Baisour]], [[Choueifat]] and [[Aley]]. Most of the fighting was concentrated on Hill 888. Fighting started when four Druze members of the [[Aley]] municipal police were kidnapped by Hezbollah.<ref name="bbs22"/> Soon after the news of the kidnapping spread, the mayor of Aley assembled a group of PSP fighters and went up to Hill 888. As they reached the hill they were attacked by Hezbollah gunmen who wounded a few of the PSP and municipality members. PSP members retaliated by killing 3 of the kidnappers. The incident developed into a significant armed clash.<ref>{{cite web|title=Saturday's live coverage of the war in Lebanon|url=http://www.yalibnan.com/site/archives/2008/05/_1415_governmen.php|publisher=[[Ya Libnan]]|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080612180619/http://yalibnan.com/site/archives/2008/05/_1415_governmen.php|archive-date=2008-06-12|access-date=2008-12-24}}</ref> Artillery and mortars were used for the first time during these battles. A ceasefire agreement was supposed to take place at 18:00 of the same day, but fighters from both sides continued to exchange fire.{{Citation needed|date=May 2020}} Negotiations were ongoing for the PSP members to give up the fight and surrender their positions to the Lebanese Army, but it never happened.{{Citation needed|date=May 2020}}
The battles at Aley stopped for several hours, but the two sides clashed again in [[Barouk|Mount Barouk]] to the southeast shortly before midnight. [[Barouk|Barook]] separates the Druze heartland of [[Shouf]] from the mainly Shi'ite southern end of the Bekaa Valley. That night Hezbollah's fighters deployed from southern Beirut to the [[Qmatiye]] area tried to attack the hills near Aley but they were beaten back. After that Hezbollah tried to go on the offensive again and attacked their rival's positions. The Druze fighters had fought the Hezbollah militants from dug-in positions left over from the 1975–90 Civil War.<ref>{{cite magazine|author=Nicholas Blanford/Qmatiyeh|date=2008-05-13|title=Hizballah's Toughest Foe in Lebanon|url=http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1756914,00.html?xid=feed-yahoo-full-world|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121026070641/http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1756914,00.html?xid=feed-yahoo-full-world|archive-date=2012-10-26|access-date=2008-12-24|url-status=dead}}</ref> The Druze used hunting guns, AK 47s and other machine guns, RPGs and allegedly even 23mm [[Anti-Aircraft Guns|anti-aircraft guns]] to blast at the advancing Hezbollah fighters.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Hizballah's Toughest Foe in Lebanon|url=https://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20080514/wl_time/hizballahstoughestfoeinlebanon;_ylt=AsddSgiJhYKEuX94P5C38RPagGIB|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|archive-url=https://archive.today/20080531084646/http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20080514/wl_time/hizballahstoughestfoeinlebanon;_ylt=AsddSgiJhYKEuX94P5C38RPagGIB|archive-date=May 31, 2008|access-date=2008-05-14|url-status=dead}}</ref> Opposition forces bombarded the pro-government Druze area with artillery while ground forces attacked Druze positions using rockets and machine guns.<ref>{{cite news|title=Hezbollah-led forces take revolt to mountains above Beirut|publisher=[[CNN]]|url=http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/05/11/lebanon.violence/index.html|access-date=2008-05-15|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080514143633/http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/05/11/lebanon.violence/index.html|archive-date=2008-05-14}}</ref> By morning, the Druze fighters agreed to cease hostilities and several villages loyal to Lebanon's pro-government Druze leader Walid Jumblatt had been handed over to the army.<ref name="BBC May 1122"/> The kidnapped municipality police members were released by Hezbollah on May 12 in exchange of at least 30 Hezbollah members that were kidnapped by PSP in Mount Barook. Hezbollah were defeated.<ref>{{cite web|title=Monday's live coverage of the war in Lebanon|url=http://yalibnan.com/site/archives/2008/05/breaking_news_l_7.php|publisher=[[Ya Libnan]]|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080616122527/http://yalibnan.com/site/archives/2008/05/breaking_news_l_7.php|archive-date=2008-06-16|access-date=2008-12-24}}</ref>
====Clashes in Hamra and Tripoli====
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