Image copyright AFP Image caption A woman has been killed by gunfire in the Lebanese capital
Some of the worst sectarian violence Beirut has seen in more than a decade has left at least six people dead, including a woman.
One car bomb exploded on Monday, killing a local leader of the group Hezbollah and two his relatives.
After an explosion that killed an activist of the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) in the Druze district of Akkar, a gun battle broke out in the nearby neighbourhood of Soukar.
Authorities say Hezbollah set off the bomb in nearby Ibliya.
It was an apparent revenge for the death of a member of the Syrian army near Ibliya in an air strike on Sunday.
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The gunman who targeted the FPM activist was from the Hariri clan, considered loyal to the Saudi royal family, but carried out the attack on behalf of Hezbollah, which is backed by the Saudis.
That in turn led to a fierce exchange of fire between the two sides, killing at least six people, many of them from the FPM.
The trouble follows the announcement on Friday that Sunni Muslim cleric Hussein al-Hajj Hassan, who heads the Sunni Muslim Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigade, was being killed.
That announcement triggered clashes between his supporters and Hezbollah supporters, and on Monday there was a second explosion outside his home.
Image copyright EPA Image caption Police rushed to the scene as people ran in terror
Hezbollah has said Mr Hajj Hassan’s killing was “related to the clashes” and blamed Israel.
Syria’s government also denied any role in the killing.
Image copyright Reuters Image caption Men run from the scene as gunfire rings out
The conflict in Syria has led to sectarian tensions and street violence within Lebanon, with many Syrian Sunnis backing the rebels, and also the government of President Bashar al-Assad, who is a member of the Alawite offshoot of Shia Islam.
Pro-government politicians generally have ties to the FPM.
Sunday’s attack in Akkar was the worst violence there since 2011, when the Iran-backed Hezbollah pulled out of a UN-backed security force in a dispute over its military presence in neighbouring Syria.
