Some 150 Syrians Flee Homs Village into North Lebanon
Around 150 Syrians fleeing unrest in their hometowns arrived Friday in north Lebanon via an illegal border crossing, a cleric working with the displaced told Agence France Presse.
Sheikh Mustafa Hammoud, imam of a mosque in the border village of Kneissi, said the Syrians -- mainly women, children and the elderly -- had made their way from the village of al-Qussair overnight for fear of fresh unrest after Friday Muslim prayers.
"Some of the refugees settled with relatives in Lebanon, but most have been offered shelter in a school in the village of Mashta Hammoud" in the region of Akkar in north Lebanon, he said.
Thousands of Syrians have poured into north Lebanon since April, using illegal crossings generally used by smugglers.
Rights groups estimate more than 1,300 civilians and 300 security force personnel have been killed since protests against the rule of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad erupted mid-March. Thousands others have been arrested.
At least six protesters were killed Friday as rallies erupted across Syria after weekly Muslim prayers, activists said.
Source: Agence France Presse
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