Lebanese troops and militants of Fatah al-Islam entrenched in a Palestinian refugee camp in northern Lebanon renewed their fighting Thursday night after a tenuous two-day truce, local TV channel reported.

It was not clear what prompted the renewed fighting, but the TV showed images of artillery fire on the camp.

Heavy exchanges of gunfire erupted and sound of explosions were heard during the fighting, said media reports.

According to the reports, Lebanese troops were moved earlier in the day around the Palestinian refugee camp of Nahr el-Bared though they did not attempt to advance, apparently giving time for negotiations.

Hours before the renewed fighting, Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Seniora vowed to uproot terrorism and finish off the extremist militants of Fatah al-Islam, which was singled out by the premier as a "terrorist organization."

"We will not surrender to terrorism. We will work on rooting out terrorism and finishing it off," Seniora said in a televised speech on the occasion of the 7th anniversary of Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon.

Fighting first broke out on Sunday, killing at least 32 soldiers before it died down on Tuesday under a truce.

Scores of civilians in the camp, home to some 40,000 Palestinians refugees, are believed to have been killed though an official tally is not yet available.

On Thursday, Defense Minister Elias Murr issued an ultimatum to Fatah al-Islam militants holed up in Nahr al-Bared, telling them to surrender or face a military assault.

Source: Xinhua