Mashnouq Downplays Hostages Video, Says Qalamoun Battle to Impact Case

Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq stressed on Wednesday that the real danger threatening Lebanon is a military operation carried out by a group other than the army, undermining the impact of a video circulated by al-Qaida-affiliate al-Nusra Front for the hostages in its captivity.

“The real danger of al-Qalamoun battle is its negative impact on the case of the hostage servicemen,” Mashnouq said in comments published in al-Joumhouria newspaper.

He noted that the “life of abducted servicemen is the (state's) main concern,” refusing attempts by the kidnappers to use them to “twist the arm” of the Lebanese government.

Mashnouq told the daily “if the Lebanese army is seeking to stage any military operation against terrorists along the country's border then it will have the support of the state as it represents all of Lebanon.”

Speculation has been rife about a spring attack in Qalamoun by Hizbullah, which has bolstered Syrian President Bashar Assad against rebels in battles throughout the country.

The Qalamoun region straddles the Syria-Lebanon border and was a stronghold of rebel forces until a major operation by Syrian regime troops backed by Hizbullah fighters last year.

While most of the region was recaptured, opposition militants and jihadists remain entrenched in the mountainous area that runs directly along the border, which is porous and ill-defined.

From there, jihadists have launched attacks inside Lebanon, including in August 2014, when fighters from al-Nusra Front and the Islamic State group briefly overran the northeastern border town of Arsal.

A truce ended the attack, but the groups took several dozen Lebanese security forces with them as hostages when they withdrew from the town into the surrounding mountains.

They have since executed four of them and al-Nusra on Tuesday released a video showing some of the remaining 25 hostages warning they would pay the price of any operation in Qalamoun.

Mashnouq told al-Joumhouria that the negotiations with al-Nusra Front are ongoing, saying: “I have received any indications from the concerned officials that the deal is harmed.”

“The video has no impact on the course of negotiations.”

On Monday, Islamist rebels led by al-Nusra launched an attack against Hizbullah positions in the Bekaa Valley, and a source close to the group said "the battle in the region has begun".

Hizbullah has been a key force multiplier for Assad as he has battled an uprising that began with anti-government protests in March 2011 and spiraled into a war after a regime crackdown.

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