BAALBEK, Lebanon: Tensions simmered Wednesday between residents of the northeastern border town of Arsal and the adjacent Syrian village of Qara amid a spate of tit-for-tat killings and kidnappings involving residents of both areas.
Armed Arsal residents Wednesday attempted to free Hussein Saifeddine from the mainly Shiite Baalbek-Hermel village of Halbata after he was abducted by Syrian assailants there two days earlier.
The Ezzeddine and Kronbi families, who are natives of Arsal, were tasked by the Saifeddine family to free their son, who is being held hostage in the border town.
When rescue attempts failed Wednesday, members of the Ezzeddine family kidnapped five Syrians from the Warde family suspecting their involvement in the abduction, a security source said. The Syrian captives come from the town of Qara, near the Lebanese border.
Security sources said that figures from Arsal and Qara have launched negotiations that aim to secure the release of Saifeddine and the captive Syrians. Both sides will also seek an agreement to decrease the presence of militants in the town, the source said.
Arsal’s mukhtar, Mohammad Ezzeddine, told The Daily Star that a solution was on the horizon and called on all parties to remain calm pending the release of the captives.
In a bid to pressure the Ezzeddine and Kronbi families to find the captors of Hussein, the Saifeddine family Tuesday kidnapped two Kronbis in the Baalbek-Hermel village of Nabi Othman.
The two captives were released that same night after the families agreed to coordinate efforts to retrieve Saifeddine.
The source said tensions are running high in Arsal as the hunt continues for Saifeddine, who runs a roastery in the Bekaa Valley village of Hawsh al-Nabi. He was kidnapped while selling produce in Arsal. An Arsal source said that the Ezzeddine and Kronbi families both have long-standing personal disputes with Syrian refugees residing in the town, which have led to tit-for-tat killings and kidnappings between the Arsalis and Syrian residents.
The two families have coordinated efforts in an attempt to crack down on security breaches committed by Syrians in the town, the source added.
Heightened tensions have risen in light of attempts by Arsal residents to take security into their own hands, as residents complain of the lack of state presence inside the town.
The absence of the military, which is only stationed across the northeastern border and areas surrounding the town, has led to a lax security situation as killings and kidnappings continue to burden Arsal, the source said.
Baker Hujeiri, a Future Movement representative in Arsal, told The Daily Star that he was troubled by the recent developments in the town. The recent kidnappings and killings that have recently targeted the town are a direct result of the absence of the state from the area, he said.
He said that if security forces didn’t mobilize inside the town, then Arsal residents would take matters into their own hands and persecute any Lebanese or Syrian accused of security breaches.
A senior Army source said that troops stationed around the town have recently beefed up their presence in light of the developments.
Asked whether the Army would actually enter the town, the source said: “Things inside the town are under scrutiny now, we will see how things will evolve.”
The source told The Daily Star it was clear that residents of Arsal were fed up with the presence of Syrian militants inside the town.
Arsal Mayor Ali Hujeiri condemned the Ezzeddine family for kidnapping the five Syrians, describing the move as an unlawful act committed by a group of people that abide by self-made laws.
He added the Saifeddine’s kidnapping should have implications only for those who carried out the act, noting that Arsal residents should not have to pay the price for the abduction.
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