Beirut - Hundreds of Lebanese fled Lebanon to neighbouring Syria on Friday to escape the sectarian violence that has shaken the country over the last three days. Men carrying their children crossed on foot the Masnaa border point and took taxis waiting on the Syrian side to Damascus.
Some were going directly to Damascus airport to travel further, others were leaving to stay with friends in the Syrian capital.
Those fleeing the fighting - which has threatened to plunge Lebanon into a fresh civil war - also included British, American, German and Cypriots as well as numerous Syrian labourers.
Several Arab states have already begun evacuating their nationals from Lebanon, whose only international airport and shipping port have been shut down because of the crisis.
A German woman who refused to give her name said she was leaving through the border to take a plane from Damascus airport to Germany: "I was supposed to leave Sunday and decided instead to leave today."
She said that although the experience had been trying, it had not put her off returning some day. "I like Lebanon and this has not put me off."
Lebanon's international airport has been virtually shut down since Wednesday as anti-government protests escalated with militants blocking the main road with burning tyres and other obstacles.
An airport official said all flights had been cancelled Friday and it was unclear when traffic would resume, adding: "As soon as they open the road, the flights will resume."
