US declares Lebanese group terrorists

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WASHINGTON, Aug 12 (AP): The Bush administration has blacklisted as a "foreign terrorist organisation" a Lebanese Islamist group blamed for major fighting at a refugee camp, the Associated Press has learned.
The State Department is expected to announce the designation against al-Qaida-inspired Fatah al-Islam, which is suspected of having links with Syria, Monday.
The designation imposes financial and travel restrictions on the group and its members, officials said Saturday, speaking on condition of anonymity because the designation is not yet public.
The officials said Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice signed off on the decision to place the radical group on the international terror list Friday. The sanctions took effect with her signature.
The US designation of Fatah al-Islam will bring to 43 the number of groups on the blacklist, which already includes many of the world's most notorious terrorist organisations.
The designation freezes the assets of the group in US jurisdictions, bars its members from US soil and makes it illegal for US citizens or those subject to US laws to provide it with "material support or resources."
The action against the Lebanese group comes as the Bush administration is stepping up efforts to distance Lebanon from Syrian influence and sporadic fighting between Lebanese troops and Fatah Islam militants.
It comes as Washington steps up efforts to free Lebanon from Syrian influence and amid serious clashes between Lebanese troops and Fatah Islam militants at the Nahr el-Bared camp that have killed at least 136 people since they erupted in May.