TRIPOLI, Lebanon: A terror suspect was killed and a Salafist militiaman with dozens of outstanding warrants against him was arrested overnight Sunday during raids carried out by Lebanese security forces in the north Lebanon city of Tripoli, security sources told The Daily Star on Sunday.
Tensions ran high in Tripoli after the news spread with supporters of the militiaman Hussam al-Sabbagh taking to the streets and blocking roads. The Lebanese Army is still working on clearing the streets and restoring calm.
Suspected terrorist Monzer al-Hassan, accused of providing a terror cell with explosives, was killed during a raid of his apartment at 1 a.m. in the City Complex building in Tripoli.
Security forces had intelligence that Hassan had provided explosive belts and material to a terrorist cell that was planning to carry out major attacks in Lebanon. Late in June, a Saudi suicide bomber blew himself up at the capital’s Duroy Hotel during a raid by General Security personnel. A would-be suicide bomber survived the blast and is undergoing interrogation. Hassan is suspected of being the main supplier of the two Saudi bombers.
The sources said Hassan was killed during clashes with security forces at his apartment. The 24-year-old was wearing an explosives belt and threatened to blow himself up.
Meanwhile, the army arrested Sabbagh, who is wanted for dozens of outstanding arrest warrants for his pivotal role in fighting this year between the Tripoli neighborhoods of majority Sunni Bab al-Tabbaneh, where pro-Syrian revolution sentiments prevail and the predominately Alawite Jabal Mohsen.
The sources said the Army arrested Sabbagh at the Al-Manar checkpoint in Tripoli. A meeting was held at the residence of a top Salafist sheikh, Salem al-Rafei, to discuss “escalatory measures,” they added.
On April 1, the Lebanese Army launched a security plan in the northern city, which resulted in the arrest of dozens of gunmen and militia commanders from both Bab al-Tabbaneh and Jabal Mohsen neighborhoods. The security crackdown largely brought calm to Tripoli, which had witnessed numerous rounds of violence over the last several years, linked to the civil war in Syria.
Advertisement
No comments:
Post a Comment