Nusra Front Threatens to 'Kill its Shiite Captives' Should Hizbullah Intervene in Qalamun Battle
The al-Qaida-affiliated al-Nusra Front threatened on Sunday to “kill the Shiite Lebanese soldiers” it had kidnapped earlier in August should Hizbullah intervene in battles in Syria's al-Qalamun region, while also issuing a warning to the Free Patriotic Movement, reported the Turkish Anatolia news agency.
The group said in a statement that it will wage the battle to “liberate” al-Qalamun in a few days, adding: “Hizbullah's participation against us will force us to kill our Shiite prisoners.”
Hizbullah has been taking part in the fighting in Syria for over year now.
The Shiite group has been waging battles alongside the country's ruling regime.
The Syrian regime forces, backed by Hizbullah, seized control of al-Qalamun in April.
Commenting on the release of five Sunni security personnel on Saturday, the al-Nusra Front said: “We released them as a goodwill gesture because we are of the same fold.”
The al-Nusra Front had kidnapped a number of Lebanese soldiers and security forces from the northeastern border town of Arsal in light of clashes between Islamists and the army in the region.
The battles began on August 2 and ended five days later.
The gunmen withdrew from the town, but abducted the security personnel.
Five of them were released on Saturday.
Moreover, the al-Nusra Front also addressed Christians in Lebanon, warning that Hizbullah has “dragged them in wars that have nothing to do with them.”
“We turn to reasonable Christians to extinguish the flame of war that the Free Patriotic Movement has ignited,” it said.
“The FPM's recent actions has thwarted the release of your Christians sons,” it said in reference to Christian security personnel among its Lebanese captives.
“You must maintain neutrality between us and the Iranian party,” it added in reference to Hizbullah, which is backed by Iran and allied with the FPM.
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