Masked Gunmen Open Fire at Clinic in Arsal, Continue Assaults in Town

Masked gunmen opened fire at dawn on Saturday at the guards of Hariri clinic in the northeastern border town of Arsal.

The state-run National News Agency reported that unknown assailants on a motorcycle opened fire at the Hariri clinic in the town, causing material damage.

Acts of sabotage and armed violence have been on the rise in recent weeks in the Bekaa town of Arsal, where gunmen are trying to take the village back to August 2, when extremists from the Qaida-linked al-Nusra Front and the Qaida breakaway group Islamic State crossed the border and engaged in bloody clashes with the Lebanese army.

A ceasefire was reached a few days later, but the retreating militants took with them several captive Lebanese troops and policemen. Seven were released while three have since been executed at the hands of the jihadists.

"Since three days, masked gunmen have been shooting at surveillance cameras in the main and side streets and public squares of Arsal,” NNA said.

The armed men are “moving on motorcycles and using pump-action rifles.”

H.K.

D.A.