Hizbullah on Friday hailed the Lebanese army’s special operation against Islamic State militants in the outskirts of the Bekaa border town of Arsal, noting that it has “highlighted its essential role in defending the border and ridding it of terrorists.”
“This heroic operation is a true reflection of the Lebanese armed forces’ commitment to dealing preemptive blows to the terrorists, where needed, to prevent them from plotting criminal operations against the Lebanese,” the party said in a statement.
It also noted that the Lebanese “cannot forget the soldiers who are enduring captivity at the hands of these terrorist groups,” hoping the operation “will contribute to bringing them back safe to their families.”
Earlier on Friday, the army said it had detained a leading local IS commander and 10 other members in a raid near the border with Syria.
The army said special forces and other troops carried out the dawn attack on an IS headquarters in the mountainous outskirts of Arsal.
The army said the detained IS commander, Ahmed Youssef Ammoun, had been involved in preparing car bombs used in attacks in various parts of Lebanon, including the southern suburbs of Beirut.
It also accused him of involvement in attacks on army posts during fighting in the region in August 2014 when IS and al-Qaida’s Syrian affiliate briefly overran the town of Arsal.
As the jihadists withdrew, they abducted 30 soldiers and policemen, five of whom were subsequently executed.
The 16 hostages held by al-Qaida’s affiliate, known then as al-Nusra Front, were released in December 2015 after lengthy negotiations, but there has been no progress on the release of the nine held by IS.
Lebanon has been rocked by periodic bomb attacks, often targeting strongholds of Hizbullah, which have killed scores of civilians.
Hizbullah has sent fighters to Syria to bolster President Bashar Assad’s government against rebel forces, among them jihadists.
