BEIRUT: Residents of Deir al-Qamar urged security forces and judicial authorities Sunday to impose the strictest punishment on those who attacked locals, following a dispute that broke out during a basketball game over the weekend.

The dispute between supporters of the Talaeh team of Deir al-Ahmar and Tawhid team of Jahiliyeh over the game’s results escalated into gun fire when supporters of Tawhid, armed with knives, sticks and guns, attacked local residents. The Lebanese Army arrested several people tied with the shootings.

Members of the Deir al-Qamar municipal council and local officials held a meeting Sunday to condemn what they described as a riot by Tawhid supporters.

“Deir al-Qamar has always believed in national coexistence and in good ties with its neighbors. Today, we hold onto national coexistence even more but at the same time [we] remind everyone that the village has overcome the harsh circumstances of the civil war and remained a symbol of national coexistence,” said a statement released following the meeting.

The statement was referring to the civil war era which saw bloody clashes between Christians and Druze in the Chouf Mountains.