Timeline of the 2007 Lebanon conflict This is a detailed timeline of the 2007 Lebanon conflict . Timeline . May 20 : Start of the fighting in Tripoli and Nahr al - Bared . Fighting began early on Sunday after a police raid on a house in Tripoli which was apparently being used by militants from Fatah al - Islam . The militant group subsequently began shooting at the Lebanese security forces who returned fire , triggering clashes in the vicinity of the Nahr al - Bared Palestinian refugee camp near Tripoli . The men reportedly resisted arrest and the violence spread to neighbouring streets . The police and the army had conducted the raid after allegations that Fatah al - Islam members tried to rob a bank on Sunday and " take control of several security strongholds in the North " according to Ahmad Fatfat , Lebanese Minister of Youth and Sports in Prime Minister Fouad Siniora ' s cabinet . Militants then attacked a Lebanese military post at the gate of the camp , seizing several vehicles . The Lebanese military sent reinforcements , including tanks , which returned fire at Fatah al - Islam positions . At least 27 Lebanese soldiers were killed in the fighting , along with an undetermined number of civilians and militants . May 21 : Nahr al - Bared under siege . Fighting renewed after a short - lived truce earlier in the day was declared in order to transport the dead and injured out of the camp in ambulances . According to the Lebanese news channel NewTV , allegations arose that Fatah al - Islam militiamen shot at ambulances entering and exiting the camp . The Lebanese Army began shelling Nahr al - Bared at what it believed were Fatah al - Islam positions ; many civilians were killed . May 22 : The fighting continues at Nahr al - Bared , ceasefire . Despite talks of a cease - fire , Fatah al - Islam militants continued battling the Lebanese army at the outskirts of the refugee camp for a third day . Fighting resumed when Lebanese tanks and artillery began shelling the members of the radical Fatah al - Islam group taking refuge in the camp . By mid - morning the battle intensified with heavy exchanges of small arms and machine - gun fire . Conditions inside the overcrowded Nahr al - Bared camp became increasingly unbearable as the army continued pounding militant positions there . Doctors in the camp have pleaded for a ceasefire because of the dead and wounded lying on the streets . Electricity has been cut and there is a limited supply of water . Brig . Gen . Bilal Aslam said that " the Lebanese Army prevented supplies and aid from entering the camp . " He also claimed militant fighters were stationed on the outskirts of the camp , but not in it . The militant group said it would end confrontations with the Lebanese army starting 14 . 30 local time . A fragile truce let 10 people flee Nahr al - Bared . In Tripoli , one Fatah al - Islam militant blew himself up , after being surrounded by Lebanese soldiers in the same house that security forces had raided on May 21 , 2007 . May 23 : Thousands flee Nahr al - Bared . During a nighttime truce announced Tuesday , about 2 , 000 inhabitants of the Nahr al - Bared camp had been able to flee . Some refugees left on foot while others were in cars and vans . The Red Crescent helped the refugees relocate to the nearby Beddawi camp , where they spent the night at schools . Other refugees left for the nearby city of Tripoli . Reports suggest that snipers fired at the fleeing crowd of refugees as they left their homes . The truce seemed to have ended when a UN aid convoy was attacked later that night . " The humanitarian situation is very , very bad , " said a spokeswoman for the U . N . Relief and Works Agency , " and deteriorating every minute . Inside the camp , there are no hospitals and only one health center , " which was unable to stay open during the fighting . May 24 : Sporadic fighting resumes at the camp . The Lebanese Prime Minister , Fouad Siniora , vowed to " uproot " terrorism from his country in his address to the nation , blaming the Fatah al - Islam militants for using the Palestinian refugees as hostages in their goal of destabilizing Lebanon . The Prime Minister said that the government would not " surrender to terrorism " and would work to eradicate it . Siniora also stressed that the target of military operations are the militants and not the Palestinian refugees in the camp . Following the speech , renewed fighting erupted between the militants and the Lebanese army at the entrance of the Nahr al - Bared camp . The Lebanese military shot and sank two inflatable boats carrying militants from the camp . But , the BBC reported that Thursday ' s gunfire exchanges were sporadic and that there was no sign of the heavy shelling seen before . But government threats of harsh action against the militants has raised fears that the Lebanese army could begin an all - out assault on the camp at any time , raising further concerns for the humanitarian situation of those civilians still inside . May 25 – 26 : Military aid shipments to Lebanon . Five military transport planes carrying military aid for the Lebanese army from the United States and its Arab allies arrived at Beirut airport . One plane was from the U . S . Air Force , two from the United Arab Emirates Air Force and two from the Royal Jordanian Air Force . The planes , which came mainly from US bases in the region , arrived following an appeal for such aid by the Lebanese government . On Saturday May 26 , two additional U . S . transport planes also carrying military aid landed in Beirut . The military supplies are believed to include ammunition for automatic rifle s and heavy weapons , spare parts for military helicopters and night - vision equipment . American Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice reaffirmed Washington ' s support for the Siniora government and added that Fatah al - Islam was trying to destabilise the democratically elected Lebanese government . But , Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah said he doubted the sudden rise in US sincerity in Lebanese internal affairs . Sporadic exchanges of gunfire were also reported between Lebanese troops and Fatah al - Islam fighters as the army continued to build up its presence around the Nahr al - Bared refugee camp . According to the BBC , the militants still holed up inside the camp were determined not to surrender . Aid workers struggled to deliver food and medicine to the thousands of Palestinian refugees who had not left the area . May 26 was a largely peaceful day . May 27 – 28 : Fighting erupts , negotiations continue . Lebanese army posts were shelled and gunfire was heard late on May 27 , despite a cease - fire deal at Nahr al - Bared . The head of Fatah al - Islam , the militant Palestinian group , said his men would not surrender . The latest spat of violence came as negotiations were reportedly taking place with the Islamists . The conflict had entered its first week and left dozens dead , including many civilians . A UN staffer declared that about 25 , 000 had fled the camp by now but thousands still remain . The Lebanese army was helped by new reinforcements being sent up . Lebanese government officials have told AFP that they had given Palestinian factions until the middle of the week to negotiate a peaceful solution to end the fighting . According to the BBC , Fatah al - Islam leaders now seem to have endorsed the same rhetoric as al - Qaeda . The group previously stated that it was defending Muslims and Palestinians in Lebanon but rival factions have distanced themselves from the group . May 29 – 31 : Fighting and charges . Sporadic fighting erupted on May 29 between the Lebanese army and militants , with no sign of progress in efforts to mediate an end to the 10 - day standoff . One Lebanese soldier was killed in the clashes . On May 30 , Lebanon charged 20 members of Fatah al - Islam with terrorism . Judiciary sources said Wednesday ' s charges against the 19 Lebanese and one Syrian , all in custody , carried the death penalty . May 31 was largely peaceful . June 1 : Heavy fighting . Heavy fighting has resumed on the morning of June 1 between the Lebanese army and Islamic militants entrenched in Nahr el - Bared . Artillery shelling and machine - gun fire have been heard as tanks massed outside the Nahr al - Bared camp in what may be the start of a final ground offensive . The fighting was reported to be concentrated by the southern and northern entrances of the camp . At least 19 people were killed , including three army soldiers . June 2 : The offensive continues . On Saturday morning the Lebanese Army resumed the attack on the terrorists in the camp , using artillery shelling and an attack helicopter for the first time since the beginning of the fights . Fatah al - Islam confirms that one of its senior leaders , Abu Riyadh , had been killed by a Lebanese army sniper . June 3 – 4 : Ain al - Hilweh violence . Fighting broke out between soldiers and Islamist militants at a second Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon . The violence in the Ain al - Hilweh camp , near the southern city of Sidon , was said to involve Jund al - Sham militants . Two people - a soldier and a civilian - were injured when suspected militants fired a grenade at an army checkpoint . Army troops responded to the rocket propelled grenade attack with gunfire . In subsequent fighting , two soldiers and two militants were killed June 5 : Lebanese troops continue to pound refugee camp . While the Lebanese army intensified its offensive on the refugee camp in Nahr al - Bared , seven Fatah al - Islam members surrendered to mainstream Fatah Palestinian faction . Fatah is the first Palestinian faction present in the numerous refugee camps in Lebanon to take action against the allegedly al - Qaeda linked group since the fighting began . Khaled Aref , a representative of the mainstream Fatah group in the Ein al - Hilweh camp , said Palestinian factions there had decided to " isolate Jund al - Sham and not give way to any attempt to import any of what ' s happening in Nahr al - Bared . " June 6 – 7 : Calm days . Only sporadic gunfire and some mortar rounds and artillery shells were heard these days . A Lebanese soldier was killed by Islamist sniper fire in the Nahr el - Bared refugee camp . June 8 : Heavy fighting erupts once again . After mediators failed to convince the Islamists to surrender , the Lebanese army attacked Nahr el - Bared once again . Witnesses inside the camp said over the weeks , the army has conquered more and more positions from Fatah al - Islam inside the camp . Fatah al - Islam has threatened to spread fighting to other parts of the country . June 9 – 10 : Heavy casualties for the army . As Lebanese troops attacks the Islamists inside , they meet stiff resistance from Islamist militiamen from their positions . 9 soldiers died on Saturday alone . Casualties on the Fatah al Islam side remain unknown . The army said they were on the winning hand , but the Islamists said they are holding their ground . A spokesman for FaI said they had seized Lebanese Army weapons in an attack A huge rally with tens of thousands of demonstrators was walked in Tripoli to thank and support the Lebanese Army . June 13 – 14 : Relative calm . Two days of relative calm followed heavy fighting . June 25 : Continued advancements . Heavy fighting continued between the Lebanese army and Fatah al - Islam . Reports from army sources stated that 3 army soldiers and 15 militants were killed . About 40 bodies of killed militants were cleared from the camp and 40 Fatah al - Islam militants were arrested . In a report by Lebanon ' s Defense Minister Elias Murr to al Arabiyeh TV recounted that the attack on UNIFIL was not a suicide bomb but it was a remotely activated car bomb . September 2 : camp taken . Lebanese troops took control of the Palestinian refugee camp , killing at least 31 fighters who tried to flee September 7 : victory declared . The Lebanese Army officially declares victory in Naher al - Bared .