In a speech given two days after the defeat of Fatah Al-Islam terrorists in the northern city of Nahr el-Bared, Lebanese Defense Minister Elias Murr told the public that the army’s victory “thwarted the greatest threat that stood before the Lebanese people.”  Fatah Al-Islam had “spread like cancerous cells and sought to damage all parts of the nation,” Murr said.

The army’s head of intelligence, General George Khoury, said that he had proof that Fatah Al-Islam was tied to international terrorist group Al Qaeda.  Fatah Al-Islam terrorists denied Khoury’s claim.