Syrian Troops Deploy 22 Miles South of Beirut on Sidon Outskirts

SIDON, Lebanon —  Syrian troops deployed Tuesday at the outskirts of this port city, the farthest south they have been since Israel invaded Lebanon in 1982.

The Syrians said the move was aimed at ending the 23-month-old battle between Palestinians and Shia Muslims around Sidon’s two Palestinian refugee camps and in the hills east of the city.

Officials at the Syrian command in Beirut said their paratroopers took up positions on a 22-mile stretch of the highway along the Mediterranean from Beirut to the Awwali River on Sidon’s northern outskirts. The 120 Syrian paratroopers stopped about five miles from the refugee camps of Miye ou Miye and Ein el Hilwa.

The force is part of a 7,000-man contingent dispatched to West Beirut 7 1/2 weeks ago at the request of Muslim government leaders to curb three years of violent feuding between rival militias.

Meanwhile, in Muslim West Beirut, three assailants tossed sticks of dynamite from a speeding car in the biggest single-day bombing blitz since Syrian troops entered the city Feb. 22. The six bombings caused panic among morning rush hour commuters, but no injuries were reported.