At least 24 people were wounded on Sunday during clashes between rival factions in northern Lebanon, a security official told Agencies. Fighting began at 4.15 am (local time) in Bab al-Tabbaneh and Jabal Mohsen, northern sectors of the city of Tripoli. The official said pro-government Sunni militants fought with a group of Alawites, a dissident branch of Shiism which however supports the Shiite Hezbollah opposition movement. Clashes extended to the al-Qobbe zone in the east of Tripoli where, an AFP correspondent said, families could be seen fleeing the district.