Lebanese troops are to take over security at checkpoints set up by the Hezbollah movement in their southern Beirut stronghold after two bombings, the interior minister told AFP on Sunday.

"A joint force of 800 men composed of soldiers from the army and security services will begin their deployment on Monday afternoon in the southern suburbs," Marwan Charbel said.

The Shiite militant group Hezbollah is a powerful force in Lebanon, particularly in the southern suburbs of Beirut, where it has been accused of running a "state-within-a-state".

Following two bombings targeting its Beirut bastion, Hezbollah turned the southern suburbs into a fortress with guards in civilian clothes policing the streets, stopping and searching cars and asking motorists for their IDs. [Link]