ARSAL, Lebanon: A Muslim Scholars Committee member was detained Sunday by the Lebanese Army along with two other men as they headed to the outskirts of the northeastern town of Arsal.
Committee member Sheikh Hussam Ghali, who is also the general-coordinator for Lebanon’s Islamic Medical Association, was arrested by the Army as he attempted to enter Arsal’s outskirts.
Ghali was reportedly going to the outskirts to meet with the captors of 25 Lebanese hostages.
Security sources denied that any of the detained individuals had been wearing a suicide belt, after media reports alleged that one of the suspects was carrying explosives.
It remains unclear why the three men were arrested.
The Muslim Scholars Committee, a gathering of Salafist Sheikhs, brokered a cease-fire that ended five days of clashes between the Army and militants from ISIS and the Nusra Front who overran Arsal in August.
The jihadists withdrew from the town, but took with them more than 30 Army soldiers and Internal Security Forces personnel as hostages.
Last week the committee said that it wanted to be in charge of mediation efforts with the captors, but that it would only do so if it was formally commissioned by the government to manage the talks.
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