Gen. Aoun Says Army Won't Let Syrian Camps Become 'Cover for Terrorists'

Army Commander General Joseph Aoun on Tuesday stressed that the military will not allow the Syrian refugee encampments in the country to turn into “a cover for terrorists.”

“While abiding by human rights standards, the army will not allow the camps to turn into a cover for terrorists that would allow them to secretly plot terrorist operations against targets inside the country,” Aoun emphasized during an inspection visit to the Air Forces Command in Ain el-Rummaneh.

He also noted that the army's effort is currently focused on “protecting the residents of Arsal, the border villages and the refugee settlements from infiltration attempts by the terrorists, and on coordinating with the international Red Cross and the Lebanese Red Cross to offer medical and food aid to the refugees.”

Commenting on the latest arrests at the Syrian refugee encampments, the army chief said the detainees comprised “50 dangerous terrorists, some of whom were masterminds and participants in the abduction of troops and the attack on the Arsal technical school during the August 2014 clashes.”

More than 350 Syrians were arrested during recent army raids on two refugee encampments in and around Arsal, in a crackdown that witnessed suicide and grenade attacks against army troops that left seven of them wounded.