Radical threat unites Lebanese and strange allies behind army

Children look at damage and the remains of tents for Syrian refugees that were burnt in the fighting between Lebanese army soldiers and Islamist militants in the Sunni Muslim border town of Arsal, in eastern Bekaa August 9, 2014. REUTERS/Ahmad Shalha

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Beating back an incursion by Islamists from Syria, Lebanon's poorly armed military has paid a high price - 36 of its soldiers have been killed or captured. But it has gained in one important respect by winning support from Lebanon's fractious politicians.

At odds about so much, including just who their enemies are, leaders from across Lebanon's sectarian divide have shown rare unity by agreeing they have a common foe in the Islamic State - the radical Islamist group that is dismembering Iraq and Syria.