Overnight clashes in Beirut between Sunni groups that support and oppose the Syrian regime have killed one person and wounded 10, according to Lebanese security officials, Belfast Telegraph reported.

The clashes in the predominantly Sunni neighbourhood of Tariq Jadidah are Beirut's worst in four years. They erupted hours after an anti-Syrian cleric and his bodyguard were shot dead in northern Lebanon.

The officials said the man who was killed was a member of a pro-Syrian Sunni group.

Lebanon and Syria share a complex web of political and sectarian ties and rivalries, which are easily inflamed. Last week, clashes sparked by the Syrian crisis killed at least eight people and wounded dozens in the northern city of Tripoli.