Lebanon ? Lebanon’s defense minister issued an ultimatum Wednesday to Islamic militants barricaded in this Palestinian refugee camp to surrender or face a military onslaught.

Fighters from the al-Qaida-inspired Fatah Islam militant group vowed not to give up and to fight any Lebanese assault.

Storming the Nahr el-Bared camp – a densely built-up town of narrow streets on the Mediterranean coast – could mean rough urban fighting for Lebanese troops and further death and destruction for the thousands of civilians who remain inside.

It could also have grave repercussions elsewhere across troubled Lebanon, sparking unrest among the country’s estimated 400,000 Palestinian refugees.

But the military appeared determined to uproot Fatah Islam after three days of heavy bombardment of the camp, sparked by an attack by the militants on Lebanese troops Sunday following a raid on its fighters in the nearby northern city of Tripoli.

“Preparations are seriously under way to end the matter,” Defense Minister Elias Murr said in an interview with Al-Arabiya television. “The army will not negotiate with a group of terrorists and criminals. Their fate is arrest, and if they resist the army, death.”