Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
At least seven Lebanese civilians have been killed amid reports of Hezbollah abducting and killing Syrian soldiers, heavy exchanges of fire and widespread looting and arson targeting homes.
In the past week, the conflict along the Syria-Lebanon border has escalated, an area already marked by tension since the fall of the Assad regime in December and the rise to power of jihadist rebels led by Ahmad al-Sharaa.
live
Lebanese forces mobilize to the border with Syria
Several Syrian soldiers have been killed since the outbreak of the clashes on Sunday. However, Hezbollah-affiliated Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar reported on Wednesday that the death toll on the Syrian side has risen to between 40 and 50 "gunmen," though their connection to the new Syrian army remains unclear. The report also confirms the deaths of seven Lebanese civilians. Exact casualty figures couldn't be independently verified amid conflicting reports from both sides.
The clashes are taking place in a region northeast of Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, an area predominantly inhabited by Shiite communities that are closely associated with Hezbollah.
The Lebanese terrorist group was a key ally of the Assad regime and provided significant support during Syria's 14-year civil war. Since the fall of the regime, which was brought down by a surprise offensive led by jihadists and coincided with Israel's military pressure on Hezbollah, tensions with Syrian forces loyal to al-Sharaa have intensified.
During Assad's rule, the western Syrian border served as a corridor for drugs and arms trafficking facilitated by Hezbollah and loyalists. The area is home to both legal and illegal crossings, which have facilitated the smuggling operations. Israel, aiming to disrupt the supply routes to Hezbollah from Iran, attacked these crossings during the war. The collapse of the Assad regime dealt a significant blow to Hezbollah's smuggling network, and last month, al-Sharaa's regime launched an operation to curb smuggling activities.
The Syria-Lebanon border stretches approximately 375 kilometers (230 miles), with large stretches lacking clear demarcation. This geographical and demographic overlap is particularly pronounced around the Qusayr region and the western countryside of Homs, where many Lebanese citizens reside within Syrian territory.
According to a report by the Arabic-language Independent, the total population of these villages is estimated at 10,000 people. Many villagers own agricultural lands on the Syrian side, further tying them to the area.
While sporadic clashes have been reported in recent weeks, tensions boiled over on Sunday. Syria's defense ministry issued a statement accusing Hezbollah operatives of killing three Syrian soldiers and abducting them into Lebanon. Hezbollah denied the allegations. A Lebanese security official told Reuters that the Syrian soldiers were killed only after crossing into Lebanon and were shot by locals who feared their community was under attack.
Fighting has persisted despite Lebanese Defense Minister Michel Mnassa and Syrian counterpart Marahaf Abu Qasra announcing a ceasefire on Monday.
3 View gallery
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem and Syrian leader Ahmad al-Sharaa
(Photo: Reuters/Khalil Ashawi, Reuters/Mohamed Azakir)
According to the Lebanese newspaper Al-Joumhouria, around 35,000 Lebanese have been internally displaced to areas including Hermel, the Bekaa Valley and Beirut. Despite ongoing communication between the Syrian and Lebanese defense ministries, clashes along the border persist, forcing the Lebanese army to mobilize forces on both the southern and eastern fronts.
A political source told Al-Joumhouria that small groups of unknown affiliation have been "kidnapping, looting and burning homes indiscriminately in the border area with Syria." The source suggested these groups may include foreign fighters, referencing the fact that many
jihadist rebels in Hayat Tahrir al-Sham—al-Sharaa's former militia, which was officially dissolved and integrated into Syria's security forces—are Muslim combatants who traveled from other countries to join the Syrian civil war.
<< Get the Ynetnews app on your smartphone: Google Play: https://bit.ly/4eJ37pE | Apple App Store: https://bit.ly/3ZL7iNv >>
Lebanese army forces recently arrived in the disputed village of Khush al-Said Ali, where they were met with hostility from locals who accused the military of betrayal. According to a report by Hezbollah-aligned Lebanese network Al Mayadeen, Syrian gunmen set fire to civilian homes in the village. A convoy of approximately 60 Lebanese army vehicles was deployed there, but a video broadcast by Lebanon's Al-Jadeed TV showed villagers chanting in support of slain Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and calling the army "traitors."
Al-Akhbar reported that, under the ceasefire agreement, Syrian gunmen are expected to withdraw from the Lebanese part of Khush al-Said Ali, while the Lebanese army will patrol the area without establishing permanent checkpoints due to its contested status.
3 View gallery
Syria also mobilizes forces to the border with Lebanon
(Photo: Reuters/Karam al-Masri)
Additionally, the bodies of two Lebanese civilians allegedly killed by Syrian gunmen in the Syrian village of al-Fadliya were reportedly returned through the Jousieh border crossing on Tuesday in exchange for the bodies of two Syrian fighters.
The Lebanese army is reportedly bolstering its presence along the border and has formulated a plan to manage the situation in 22 villages considered to be the "contact line."
On Tuesday, Al Mayadeen reported that a shell fell near a Lebanese army position in Khush al-Said Ali, prompting the army to respond to the source of the fire.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, addressing the escalating violence, stated that he instructed the army to retaliate against any aggression from Syria. "What is happening along the eastern and northeastern borders cannot continue," Aoun declared. He issued another statement on Wednesday demanding the implementation of the ceasefire and tighter control over the border region.