BEIRUT: The families of 29 Lebanese soldiers and policemen, held hostage by Islamist militants, staged a sit-in outside the Halba Serail in north Lebanon Friday, calling for intensified action to bring their loved ones home.
The peaceful protest in the Akkar town of Halba by a crowd of about 200 lasted one hour.
“We call for intensified efforts to free our sons,” one protestor shouted.
In a related development, a number of residents of Halba briefly blocked two roads at the towns of Rahba and Mashha, calling for the speedy return of the kidnapped soldiers and policemen.
The protest came hours after images of what appeared to the beheading of Ali Sayyed, a soldier held captive by ISIS, were heavily circulated on social media Thursday night.
Sayyed hails from Akkar.
The Lebanese Army said Thursday night that it could neither confirm nor deny a claim by a member of ISIS that the militant group had beheaded Sayyed, one of 29 soldiers and policemen the group captured earlier this month following clashes in the northeastern border town of Arsal.
“Now you know who are the lions of ISIS,” tweeted Abou Misaab Hafid al-Baghdadi, who claimed to be an ISIS member, posting a gruesome picture allegedly showing Sayyed’s beheading.
A senior Army official said the military was investigating reports on the alleged beheading of Sayyed.
- Related Articles
ISIS said to behead Army soldier
Army investigates ISIS beheading claim
Machnouk: ISIS threat to kill Lebanese captives 'fabricated'
Arsal denies militants’ return; soldiers’ lives in the balance
Arsalis head home, soldiers still in captivity
Advertisement
No comments:
Post a Comment