Army Searches for Suspects in Tariq al-Jedideh

Army troops on Wednesday carried out raids in the Beirut area of Tariq al-Jedideh in search for suspects.

“The army is carrying out raids in Tariq al-Jedideh in search of suspects wanted on terrorism charges,” LBCI television reported.

MTV said troops raided places near the Cola and Corniche al-Mazraa areas in Beirut.

Meanwhile, al-Jadeed television said the army staged raids near the Beirut Arab University in Tariq al-Jedideh in search for fugitives.

It also reported raids in the nearby Afif al-Tibi Street.

According to state-run National News Agency, one person was arrested and a car was seized in Afif al-Tibi.

Al-Manar television said the arrested man was a Saudi national, adding that a woman who was with him was also apprehended.

"The raids in Tariq al-Jedideh are interconnected and part of the preemptive security plan that security agencies are implementing to bust terrorist cells," Army chief General Jean Qahwaji said as he entered a security meeting at the Grand Serail.

Later on Wednesday, MTV said security forces were still encircling a number of buildings in Tariq al-Jedideh.

The development comes amid heightened security measures in Lebanon in the wake of a number of bombings that rocked several regions.

Last week, a Saudi suicide bomber blew himself up at the Duroy Hotel in Beirut's Raouche area as General Security agents tried to storm his room. His accomplice, also a Saudi citizen, survived the blast and is being questioned.

Earlier in June, security forces raided the Napoleon Hotel in Beirut's Hamra district after obtaining information on a plot to target hospitals and high-ranking security officials.

Over 100 people were interrogated during the security raid but only a Frenchman who is originally from the Comoros islands was arrested and has reportedly confessed to being sent by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant to carry out a terrorist attack in Lebanon.

Also in June, a suicide blast at the entrance of Beirut's southern suburbs, Hizbullah's main bastion, killed a security officer and wounded 20 others.

The bombing in Tayyouneh came three days after a suicide attack in eastern Lebanon killed one person and wounded 30.

Y.R.

M.T.