Army enters Hawsh al-Sayyed Ali, closes 4 illegal border crossings

The Lebanese Army on Wednesday entered the Lebanese part of the border town of Hawsh al-Sayyed Ali after Syrian forces withdrew from it, the National News Agency said.

“Sixty vehicles entered into the Lebanese part of the town, as the army reinforced its presence with military and security checkpoints inside the town,” media reports said.

A shell had landed near a Lebanese Army checkpoint on the town’s entrance overnight, prompting the army to respond.

Clashes between Lebanese clans and Syrian forces had also renewed overnight in Hawsh al-Sayyed Ali and the town of al-Mesherfeh on Syria’s border, the reports said.

Lebanese army intelligence agents meanwhile managed to recover the bodies of two Lebanese citizens killed at the hands of Syrian gunmen. The bodies were transferred through the Jousiyeh border crossing in coordination with Lebanese General Security and the relevant judicial authorities.

The army meanwhile said it closed an illegal border crossing in the al-Qasr-Hermel area and three illegal border crossings in the Masharii al-Qaa-Baalbek area.

In another statement, the army announced that "following coordination between Lebanese and Syrian authorities to prevent a deterioration of the situations on the border, the deployed military units started carrying out security measures in the Hermel area of Hawsh al-Sayyed Ali, including patrols, in order to control security and preserve stability in the border region."