Syria Rebels Confirm Shelling Bekaa, Hizbullah Buries More Fighters

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  • W460
  • W460

Syrian rebel commanders have confirmed insurgents had fired shells into Hermel towns on Saturday and Sunday, but denied there were any attacks on Monday.

"Yesterday (Sunday), Hizbullah bombarded Qusayr, Nahriyeh, Burhaniyeh and Saqarji (near the Lebanese border) from its positions in al-Qasr and Hawsh al-Sayyed Ali. They bombed civilians and killed many women and children," said Abu Oday, a commander of the rebel Independent Farouq Division.

"If we have to, we will target civilians just like they do. Our civilians are not less valuable than theirs. Hizbullah is killing arbitrarily in Syria," he told Agence France Presse.

"Yesterday, we responded. We hit back at Hizbullah's positions," he added.

Another rebel leader, Abu Ahmed, said insurgents did not fire into Lebanon on Monday.

"We are giving the Lebanese authorities an opportunity to respond, to take practical steps to put a stop to their shelling, before we respond again."

Meanwhile, residents of the Bekaa valley, a Hizbullah stronghold, told AFP that the bodies of five Hizbullah fighters killed in Syria were brought back on Sunday and Monday for burial.

"Yesterday, we buried a Hizbullah martyr, Assaad Ali Assaad, who was killed in Syria some days ago," said a resident of Khraybeh in the Bekaa.

A security source in southern Lebanon meanwhile told AFP on condition of anonymity that four other fighters from the region had also been killed in Syria.

Future TV reported that Hizbullah held funerals Monday for Ibrahim Jawdat Qansou, who hails from the southern town of Doueir, and Abbas Rihan, who hails from the southern town of Maifadoun, saying they were killed in Syria.

Several Lebanese and Arab TV networks -- including Al-Arabiya, al-Mayadeen and al-Manar – on Monday broadcast a video showing masked fighters belonging to the so-called Popular Committees, which are backed by Hizbullah and the Syrian regime.

The gunmen on the edge of the Lebanese border village of al-Qasr told the Associated Press that their mission is to protect Shiites on the Syrian side who claim their homes, villages and families have come under attack from Sunni rebels.

In recent months, fighting has raged in and around several towns and villages inhabited by a community of some 15,000 Lebanese Shiites who have lived for decades on the Syrian side of a frontier that is not clearly demarcated in places and not fully controlled by border authorities. They are mostly Lebanese citizens, though some have dual citizenship or are Syrian.

Before Syria's uprising erupted two years ago, tens of thousands of Lebanese lived in Syria.

The Lebanese Shiite enclave on the Syrian side of the border is near the central city of Homs and across from Hermel, a predominantly Shiite region of northeastern Lebanon.

One commander of the Popular Committees said Shiite villages have been repeatedly attacked and some residents have been kidnapped and killed by rebels. He said that prompted local Shiites to take up arms to defend themselves.

"We are in a state of defense. We don't take sides (between rebels and regime forces). We are here to defend our people in the villages," said the commander, Mahmoud, who gave only his first name out of fear for his own security.

"We don't attack any area. We only defend our villages."

The border region near Homs on the Syria side is strategic because it links Damascus with the coastal enclave that is the heartland of Syria's Alawites and is also home to the country's two main seaports, Latakia and Tartus.

One of the biggest battles in the area was on Thursday when the Syrian army captured Tal al-Nabi Mindo, a village near the Lebanese border, after a day of heavy fighting.

Mahmoud said there were casualties on both sides, adding that the hilltop village overlooks several towns and villages as well as a strategically important road that links Tartus to Homs and the capital of Damascus beyond.

Mahmoud said some rebel commanders were killed in the fighting on Thursday and rebels threatened to bombard Lebanese territory in retaliation.

On Sunday, two rockets fired from Syria exploded in al-Qasr, killing one person. Two more rockets landed in the nearby village of Hawsh al-Sayyed Ali, killing a 13-year-old boy and damaging two homes.

Comments 24
Thumb geha 15 April 2013, 20:27

good riddance to any guy dead fighting in Syria.
it is not our business, furthermore, they are putting all Lebanese at odds with whoever will win this war.

Thumb banima3roof 16 April 2013, 01:48

hence how well dressed, and armed they are! hence how the report discloses that they are hizbullah fighters, and hence how the hizbullah member makes it clear that they are in syrian territory! so yalla lets continue to interfere in syrian war. as geha said: good riddance!

Thumb banima3roof 16 April 2013, 01:51

mowaten ya 3aw 3aw, if i follow you correctly (even though you never make sense), you be also be saying the following: "anyone thinking that sunnis from lebanon or anywhere else will let civilians on the border or in syria be slaughtered by the hizbulla shiaa boys, no matter what the threat, is mistaken...."

Thumb geha 16 April 2013, 07:14

mowaten
the idiot is you and people like you incapable of thinking on their own and just repeating what they have been taught by the Iranian turban man, unable to see what hizbushaitan actions are doing to Lebanon.
du to hizbushaitan involvement we are now in this situation. what is their business in Syria? support this filthy regime? they are only bringing misery to Lebanese people as demonstrated here.

Missing halaktouna77 16 April 2013, 07:46

the roar ... you do know that disagreeing with your own comment is a sign of a troubled mindset ... but again ... you follow Aoun and HA .. so I guess that's normal for u

Missing mohammad_ca 16 April 2013, 15:05

lol "for real" ya3ne more dead...prepare the body bags for more shiite boys brainwashed to defend another dictator...

Thumb lebnanfirst 15 April 2013, 20:59

Unacceptable no matter the reason/cause. Two wrongs do not make a right. Sure, HA has no business fighting in Syria (nor do the Salafists) and the FSA has no business shelling Lebanese villages/targets.
Fight HA inside Syria but not inside Lebanon.

Missing saddam 15 April 2013, 23:24

Lebnanfirst, this is a war, hezb Iran is firing artillery and mortars from Hermel which on an elevated level. Barraging al qusayr. Now in war when you get attacked, you attack back. This is not about two wrongs , what do you suggest get Barraged by artilllery and just wait till the rockets come fLl on your house. Fsa would not have any business shelling Lebanon if the attacks didn't come from Lebanon. So you should go protest to your local mp about hezb Irans involvement in Syria before you make statements to the other side. Oh yeah I forget Lebanon is not sovereignty, it is a Iranian province

Missing beirutbastard00 16 April 2013, 02:44

Complain to the local mp about hizballah? Lol in any other that would make sense...

Missing halaktouna77 16 April 2013, 07:50

I always value your comments Lebnanfirst ... you make sense

Missing mohammad_ca 16 April 2013, 16:17

hizbocrap is fighting them in Syria so why should we not expect them to fight hizbocrap in Lebanon? Let's clean our house first before calling them out on their actions.

Missing akkar1 15 April 2013, 22:06

this so called resistance is only a resistance for the shia they dont really care about lebanon

Missing saddam 15 April 2013, 23:14

Good riddance, send all of those who are aiding Bashar to hell one way ticket. Whiter they be Sunni, Shia, Christian, Druze ,whoever helps the criminal regime is accomplice to the criminal. Muslims don't destroy mosques like those liars claim, it's is Assad regime and hezb Iran which are doing, they destroyed a couple churches as well. They are the ones with the heavy weapons, they are the one who bomb indiscriminately. This Shia villages that are supposedly being attacked by the extremists have been also armed by the regime. They are the ones who are sectarian. They kill us because we are Sunnis. And they will even kill alawis or Shias if they turn against them. Remember some of them have hearts and consciences.

Missing saddam 15 April 2013, 23:19

The Shia are a drop in the ocean in the Muslim world and by this I mean Sunnis. They got themselves in a mess that there is no way out. It's like commting suicide or digging your own grave. There's no power on earth that will stop the people of Syria to get revenge of hezb Iran dogs in Lebanon. An eye for eye and a tooth for a tooth. All you hypocrites who say were extremists. If your women got raped and children got killed , you would do the same, actually you probably wouldn't because your a bunch of cowards, you go cry to America and UN to come save you but when Muslims are the victims, everybody turns a blind eye. Why , because were extremists. Well if it means to defend our deen, our land, our honor, our wealth, then it is pleasure to be called this

Default-user-icon mustapha o. ghalayini (Guest) 16 April 2013, 02:04

free lebanese army??????????????????????

Default-user-icon Mehdi (Guest) 16 April 2013, 02:27

Lebanese Army supported by the UNIFIL now along the whole Lebanese/Syrian border for the sake of the safety of the Lebanese citizens from all sects and political affiliations, alas the Hezb and Syria will refuse like they refused for sixteen years the deployment of the Lebanese Army in the South.

Missing karim_m2 16 April 2013, 08:05

"If we have to, we will target civilians just like they do."

This is a declaration of war on the Lebanese state and its civilians by the FSA-Al Qaeda terrorists. The Lebanese army must spare no effort or mercy in repelling the FSA-Al Qaeda foreign terrorist invasion and must use any and all means to deter the barbarian jihadist terrorists from causing harm to the Lebanese population.

Missing realist 16 April 2013, 12:01

HA already started this war idiot, what the hell are they doing in damascus? in 7ums? in idlib? defending what exaclty? defending a moron who was brought from england to secure golam heights after his father not to mention the genocide against his own people. HA will bring demise and destruction upon its community just as hitler did to the Germans. Do not be so arrogant, this is not a war where you kill 20 and declare divine victory, this is a totally different enemy with infinite man power and this war will not stop. You can easily start a fire but it is very hard to put it out.

Missing mohammad_ca 16 April 2013, 19:21

clean our house first, get hizbocrap to pull out their fighters.

Missing realist 16 April 2013, 12:05

what is the point mowaten exactly in what Hizbala doing? where is the logic in fighting all over Syria? this is purely an iranian interest and the she3a lebanese have no interest in this whatsoever. You just parrot your leader's lines i'm sorry, you never ever criticize one step they make. what HA is doing is suicide and will only bring unnecessary misery and death upon its community. This is not a war where you kill 20 israeli soldiers, UN and you declare victory. This is not a joke and the UN will not interfere to stop it either. And thanks to your logic the war will come to the beka3 valley, just a matter of time.

Missing mohammad_ca 16 April 2013, 15:07

Homs is not a border village.

Missing mohammad_ca 16 April 2013, 16:17

I didn't expect you to understand, it's ok.

Missing mohammad_ca 16 April 2013, 19:08

it flew, you missed it as expected :)

Missing friendofsyriaacrosstheborder 18 April 2013, 11:54

Stick all Hiz & Al-Nus in a room together and do us all a favour.