Lebanese Army Bolsters Presence along Border with Syria

The Lebanese army has bolstered its presence along the Lebanese-Syrian border in light of recent Syrian army incursions into the country, reported the pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat on Saturday.

Field sources told the daily that the army has also intensified its patrols in those areas.

“The residents of Jabal Okroum and Wadi Khaled in the North near the Syrian border have started to sense the army’s influence since its deployment in the region and they have become more at ease with the situation following the tensions that have accompanied the Syrian incursions,” they added.

A security source told the daily: “The Lebanese army and security forces are constantly present along the north eastern border and they have been performing their duties in maintaining their duties in these regions.”

“These forces weren’t waiting for security instability in order to carry out their responsibilities,” they stated.

“The incidents that have taken place in Arsal and al-Qaa in the Bekaa and Okroum and Wadi Khaled demanded that the military presence in those regions be bolstered,” it explained.

“Our northeastern borders are secure and there is nothing to worry about despite some individual incidents,” it assured.

“There is no need for tensions because we are dealing with a fraternal state that understands our situation as we understand its own,” it stressed.

On Tuesday, conflicting reports said that Syrian troops had infiltrated al-Qaa in the Bekaa region, killing two Syrian army defectors.

On October 4, Syrian tanks crossed the Lebanese border and headed towards the region of Arsal in the Bekaa where they fired at an abandoned battery factory.

On October 3, more than 20 Syrian soldiers infiltrated 500 meters deep into Lebanese territory in the area of Rajam Beit Khalaf and al-Kalkha in Wadi Khaled in the northern province of Akkar.

A few weeks prior to that Syrian troops entered part of northern Lebanon where they accidentally fired at Lebanese soldiers.

The Secretary General of the Lebanese-Syrian Higher Council Nasri Khoury stressed on Friday the daily coordination between the Lebanese and Syrian armies, adding that they hold field meetings on a weekly basis to this end.

He said after holding talks with Prime Minister Najib Miqati: “The Syrian army did not infiltrate Lebanese territory as it had been claimed and the Lebanese army can vouch for this as it is responsible for controlling the situation on the border.”