U.S. Pledges to Support Lebanon Army

Adm. William Fallon, center, the top commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East, speaks with Prime Minister Fuad Saniora, right, during his visit to Lebanon accompanied by the U.S. Ambassador to Beirut Jeffrey Feltman, left, at the Government House in Beirut, Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2007. Fallon met with Lebanese officials Wednesday as his government reassured Beirut of support for the Lebanese army's fight with al-Qaida-inspired Islamic militants in northern Lebanon. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Tawil) (Mahmoud Tawil - AP)

BEIRUT, Lebanon -- The U.S. has pledged continued support for Lebanon's army, which has been fighting a vicious battle against al-Qaida-inspired Islamist militants.

The pledge came during a visit by top U.S. commander in the Middle East, Adm. William Fallon, head of the U.S. Central Command, who met separately with Prime Minister Fuad Saniora, Defense Minister Elias Murr and army commander Gen. Michel Suleiman in a brief trip to Lebanon on Wednesday.

In a statement after the meetings, U.S. Ambassador Jeffrey Feltman praised Lebanon's efforts and reiterated "the strength of the strategic partnership between the United States and Lebanon." "Lebanon, you can count on us to support the aspirations of the heroic (Lebanese Armed Forces)," Feltman said.

The Lebanese army has been locked in fierce battles for the past three months with Fatah Islam militants holed up in a Palestinian refugee camp in northern Lebanon. A total of 148 soldiers have been killed in the fighting, along with an unknown number of militants and about 20 civilians.

Feltman said the U.S. remains committed to providing the Lebanese army with the "supplies they need to battle _ and conquer _ the armed extremists in the North. And the United States is delivering on our promise."

During a Defense Ministry ceremony in which the commanders inspected Humvee vehicles _ part of the U.S. military assistance _ Fallon was quoted by the state news agency as "offering my services and those of my command to work with you to achieve matters that you consider beneficial in building the Lebanese Armed Forces."

Washington and some of its Arab allies have airlifted supplies, mostly of ammunition, to the Lebanese army in the early days of the northern Lebanon fighting. The military in Lebanon is an all-volunteer force of 56,000, with about 220 battle tanks, no effective air power and no air defense system.

Murr, the defense minister, stressed in Wednesday's ceremony that arming the Lebanese army was a "vital necessity to defend Lebanon's sovereignty and existence and complete the war against terror."

He said it was a "joint interest" for countries to help Lebanon's military fight terrorism.

The United States has sharply increased its military assistance to Lebanon in the last year. U.S. military assistance surpassed $270 million in 2007, more than five times the amount Washington provided a year ago.

But opponents of the United States in Lebanon, particularly the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group, have criticized the assistance.