Army Arrests Gunmen Infiltrating Arsal from Syria, 'Suicide Vest' Seized
The Lebanese army on Thursday arrested three gunmen who were trying to infiltrate the Bekaa border town of Arsal and found weapons and a “suicide vest” in their possession.
“As part of the mission of controlling the land borders, army troops arrested three gunmen who were trying to infiltrate the Arsal area this afternoon,” an Army Command statement said.
“Two of them are Palestinian nationals, one carrying a European passport, and the third is a Syrian,” the statement added.
“In addition to personal firearms, an armed suicide vest and a number of hand grenades and fuses were found in their possession,” the statement said, adding that the gunmen and the seized arms were referred to the relevant authorities and that an investigation got underway.
On July 14, the army arrested a number of individuals for transporting weapons in Arsal.
The Beirut-based, pan-Arab television al-Mayadeen said those arrested were two Syrians, a Lebanese and two Palestinians who were carrying "suicide vests."
Border areas in the north and east have been struck by frequent cross-border shelling and clashes linked to the Syrian crisis, while the Syrian regime has told Lebanon to better control its porous border to prevent the smuggling of fighters and arms.
Lebanon is sharply divided over the war in Syria and Arsal is a particular flashpoint as refugees from the uprising and fighters and smugglers hostile to the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad traverse the border.
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