Lebanese Army deploys rocket launchers on Syria's border

The Lebanese Army, which is busy with the implementation of the ceasefire agreement in the south with Israel, finds itself facing a no less important task on the northern border with Syria.

The advance of armed factions, specifically Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, and allied factions in Aleppo and the Hama countryside, as well as their arrival to the outskirts of Hama city, has prompted the Army Command to “mobilize to take preventive measures for fear of extremist groups reaching the Lebanese border or the movement of sleeper cells inside the country,” Asharq al-Awsat newspaper reported on Wednesday.

According to a Lebanese security source who spoke to the daily, “multiple rocket launchers have been deployed, and the units deployed on the northern border have been reinforced so that there is readiness to deal with any emergency.”

There is “a large deployment of the army in Akkar and Baalbek-Hermel, where there are two land border regiments, two brigades and special units, seeing as it is an open area, and controlling the border is not an easy matter,” the source added.

“Measures, checkpoints and army patrols are being intensified in the northern regions,” the source said.

Lebanon fears a repeat of the events that took place on the eastern border with Syria in 2014, when groups from the Islamic State group and al-Nusra Front stormed the border town of Arsal, killing soldiers and civilians before occupying areas along the Lebanese-Syrian border for years. It also fears the movement of sleeper cells in conjunction with what is happening in Syria, especially with the presence of hundreds of thousands of displaced Syrians spread across most Lebanese regions.

The Lebanese fear is not limited to militants storming the northern border, but also of a new wave of displacement as a result of the intense fighting in northern Syria. The Lebanese security source said that “appropriate measures have been taken to prevent the influx of displaced persons from illegal crossings,” noting that “until now, no new displacement movement has been recorded towards Lebanon.”

It is worth noting that about 400,000 displaced Syrians had left Lebanon in the past two months after Israel expanded the war to Lebanon.

“There are no confirmed reports of Syrians fleeing the hostilities in northwestern Syria heading to Lebanon,” said UNHCR spokesperson in Lebanon, Dalal Harb, noting in a statement to Asharq al-Awsat that “however, UNHCR is closely monitoring the situation and remains in contact with relevant actors on both sides of the border to assess any potential movements or needs.”