Terror Groups Seeking to 'Smuggle Arms to North, Murder Arsal Figures'

Terrorist groups are seeking to “smuggle arms” to the North region and to assassinate a number of prominent figures in the northeastern border town of Arsal, a media report said on Tuesday.

“There are suspicious movements that the Islamic State group and other terrorist groups are plotting for the North region, amid credible reports about attempts to smuggle arms to the region,” al-Joumhouria newspaper reported.

Terrorist groups are also seeking to “strike the town of Arsal through assassinating and liquidating its dignitaries, the members of the new municipal council and the mayors whom the terrorist group considers to be enemies,” the daily added.

On Sunday, two brothers of IS official Hamza al-Jibbawi were arrested in army raids in the town, state-run National News Agency reported.

“Hand grenades, ammunition, arms and an IS flag were found in their house,” NNA said.

Also on Sunday, the army arrested the “private doctor” of the so-called “emir” of the Qaida-linked al-Nusra Front in the Syria-Lebanon border region.

“The Lebanese army has managed to arrest in Arsal the Syrian national J. Sharafeddine, who is the private doctor of Abu Malek al-Talli,” al-Nusra's leader in the border region, NNA said.

The army has been implementing strict security measures in and around Arsal since Saturday, in the wake of the attempted assassination of a mayor and reports that Syrian and Lebanese militants have prepared a “hit list” that includes the names of ten people in Arsal that the group intends to liquidate.

Ever since the Syrian revolt erupted in March 2011, Arsal has served as a key conduit for refugees, rebels, extremists and wounded people fleeing strife-torn Syria.

Militants from al-Nusra and the IS are entrenched in rugged mountains in the town's outskirts and along the Lebanese-Syrian border and the Lebanese army regularly shells their positions while Hizbullah and the Syrian army have engaged in clashes with them on the Syrian side of the border.

IS and al-Nusra briefly overran the town of Arsal in August 2014 before being ousted by the army after days of deadly battles.

The retreating militants abducted more than 30 troops and policemen of whom four have been executed and nine remain in the captivity of the IS group.