Lebanon building collapse death toll rises to 13

The death toll from the collapse of a residential ?building in the Lebanese city of Tripoli ?has risen to 13, as rescue teams continued ?to search for missing people beneath the rubble, Lebanon's National News Agency reports.

Rescue workers in the northern ?city's Bab ?al-Tabbaneh neighbourhood have also assisted nine survivors, ?while the search continued for others still believed to be trapped under the debris, NNA said.

Officials said on Sunday that two ?adjoining buildings had collapsed.

Abdel ?Hamid Karameh, head of Tripoli's municipal council, said he ?could not confirm how many people ?remained missing.

Earlier, the head ?of Lebanon's civil defence rescue service said the collapsed ?buildings ?had ?22 residents.

Lebanon's health ministry announced that those injured in the collapse would receive treatment at the state's expense.

A ?number of ageing residential buildings have collapsed in Tripoli, Lebanon's second-largest city, in recent weeks, highlighting deteriorating infrastructure and years of neglect, state media reported, citing municipal officials.

with AP