Lebanese army carries out fresh raids on refugee camps, arrests 36

Lebanese army carries out fresh raids on refugee camps, arrests 36
At least 36 Syrians were arrested following fresh army raids in al-Qasr town near the Syrian border, state-run news agency reported on Sunday.
2 min read
10 July, 2017
The Lebanese army carries out regular operations targeting jihadists [AFP]
The Lebanese army raided several refugee camps on the border region in northeastern Lebanon, the state-run National News Agency reported on Sunday.

The fresh raids were carried out across a number of refugee camps in al-Qasr town in Hermel.

The troops arrested 36 people during the raid over failure to produce identification documents.

Those arrested were sent to army barracks afterwhich they will be transferred to the judiciary for further investigation.

The Lebanese army carries out regular operations targeting jihadists around the border region.

Reports of Syrian men being beaten and humiliated during such army raids surfaced earlier this month, as refugee camps became a flashpoint for fighting between the army and militants from Syria.

On June 30, a wave of suicide bombs were launched against the army in the Arsal refugee camp, killing one Syrian child and wounding seven Lebanese soldiers.

Following the attacks, the army detained 355 Syrian nationals amid a sweeping security raids.

Activists shared images purported to be from the camps showing the humiliation of Syrians by security personnel and signs of torture on those arrested.

In the following days, at least four Syrian men died in custody. Lebanon said they died of "chronic illness" but photos said to be of the men's bodies showed signs of torture.

On Saturday, a military prosecutor ordered an investigation in to the death following calls from rights groups as well as the Lebanese prime minister and minister of human rights affairs.

Lebanon is hosting at least 1 million registered Syrian refugees, many of them living in tented settlements scattered around the country.

The government says that in total there are about 1.5 million Syrians in Lebanon.