Al-Sayyed Laid to Rest amid Widespread Anger
Lebanese Army Sergeant Ali al-Sayyed, who was beheaded by jihadists after being taken captive in the northeastern border town of Arsal, was laid to rest on Wednesday.
A motorcade carrying al-Sayyed's body was transported from the military hospital in Beirut to the Akkar region before he was laid to rest in his hometown of Fnaideq.
TV footage showed the presence of gunmen as the motorcade passed through villages in Akkar.
They opened fire in the air to express their anger at the beheading.
Al-Sayyed's uncle vowed “not to remain silent until the safe return of the captives.”
“You will regret this,” he said.
The soldier's father urged the gunmen not to open fire.
“My son is the nation's martyr as well as the martyr of Akkar and Fnaideq,” he said, expressing similar hopes on the return of the captives.
"He was betrayed by all the politicians, all of them! By parliamentarians and officials, and by the country. He was sold for a cheap price!" thundered his father at the funeral.
Al-Sayyed's body was handed over to military officials on Monday after negotiations with the fighters.
The military said Tuesday that DNA tests confirmed the body is that of al-Sayyed.
The soldier was decapitated by the militants according to photos posted on social networks on August 28.
Al-Sayyed disappeared from Arsal around the time militants from Syria overran Arsal early August, killing and kidnapping soldiers and policemen.
The militants included fighters from the Islamic State group and the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front.
Families have demonstrated throughout Lebanon by cutting roads to demand the captives' release.
The Islamic State group holds roughly a third of Iraq and Syria, including several strategically important cities like Fallujah and Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria.
IS has beheaded two U.S. journalists and still holds at least two other Americans hostage.
It has also threatened to behead a British hostage.
G.K.
M.T.
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