A Lebanese military court has passed a death sentence on a leader of Yasser Arafat's Fatah organisation in the Palestinian refugee camps after finding him guilty of forming armed groups and inciting rebellion.

The accused, Sultan Abu-Alynen -- Fatah's Lebanon commander since 1993 -- was not present in court. He was also sentenced to a year in jail for illicit trading in arms. Speaking afterwards from the Rashidiya camp south of Tyre he denounced the charges against him as trumped up and politically motivated. Correspondents say guerrillas from Fatah have tightened their grip over the main Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon in a move the group's opponents link to final status peace talks with Israel.

Earlier in the week Fatah said it had celebrated the graduation of a new group of its fighters at the Ain El-Hilweh camp.