Lebanese Army gains in Arsal as ISIL terrorists flee

Lebanese Army gains in Arsal as ISIL terrorists flee
Thu Aug 7, 2014 19:08:18

Lebanese Army commandos have killed at least 17 more ISIL terrorist in Arsal before the withdrawal of the armed insurgents from the northeast border town and have begun efforts to restore order in embattled area, where Lebanese forced came under attack by the Syria-based terrorists.

The killing of the foreign-backed terrorist came in a 90-minute battle that ended shortly after midnight on Thursday, raising the casualty toll of the intruding insurgents in Arsal to 67.

This is while at least 17 Lebanese soldiers and 12 civilians in the Arsal were also killed in the fighting that originally broke out on Saturday.

Sources report that terrorists loyal to Syrian terrorist Imad Jomaa attacked Lebanese forces in Arsal after his arrest by the army over the weekend but began pulling out toward Syria following the latest clashes with Lebanese troops around Wadi Sweid and Wadi Hosn in the eastern outskirts of the town.

Meanwhile, after the withdrawal of the ISIL terrorists, seven missing Lebanese police officers were found.

Security sources said the Lebanese Army found three members of the Internal Security Forces (ISF) at a house in Arsal. Around 8:30 a.m., another four ISF members turned up at a Lebanese Army checkpoint in the Ain al-Shuob neighborhood at the town's entrance.

A total of 38 members of the security forces - 19 policemen and 22 Lebanese soldiers - had been taken captive by the intruding terrorists in Arsal, according to security sources.

Meanwhile, Lebanese Army commander Gen. Jean Kahwagi said many of the captives had been taken out of Arsal by the militants.

"The captured soldiers were removed from Arsal from the onset of the battles," Kahwagi told reporters after attending part of a Cabinet meeting at the Grand Serail in Downtown Beirut.

Nine captives have so far been released as part of mediation efforts by the Committee of Muslim Scholars, which led to the cease-fire and ensuing withdrawal.

Moreover, the Syrian air force launched a series of airstrikes on the outskirts of Arsal Thursday morning, targeting insurgent hideouts along the border.

Meanwhile, a Lebanese Red Cross convoy of 17 ambulances entered Arsal for the first time since the fighting erupted Saturday and evacuated 42 civilians - 38 Syrians and four Lebanese - to nearby hospitals.

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