BEIRUT: Hezbollah’s attacks on Jabhat Fateh Al-Sham (JFS) militants have continued in Arsal on the Syrian-Lebanese border for a fifth day, with leading Lebanese parties refusing to provide it with political cover.
The Future Movement, led by Prime Minister Saad Al-Hariri, confirmed in a statement his party’s “commitment to the Lebanese army, which is the legitimate security force and the only one that is entrusted with defending Lebanon and the Lebanese people and protecting the country’s borders.”
The statement said: “If Hezbollah’s approach of incitement and treason during the ongoing battles in the eastern mountain ranges is aimed at legitimizing its participation in the Syrian war, and other ongoing wars in Lebanon and abroad, we will not be party to this national sin, regardless of the threats… against those opposing the policies of Hezbollah.”
Al-Hariri’s party said terrorism is a threat to Lebanon and the Arab and Islamic worlds, and “must be uprooted.”
But it added that fighting terrorism should not be used as a pretext “to trample upon the state and its constitutional institutions to participate in Arab civil wars, interfere in the internal affairs of Arab states or organize cells that threaten their peace and security.”
The Lebanese Forces party, in a statement by Social Affairs Minister Pierre Bou Assi, also rejected Hezbollah’s actions in Arsal, saying: “We only care about decisions taken by the Lebanese government and implemented by the legitimate security institutions.”
The Kataeb Party affirmed “the role of the Lebanese army in combatting terrorism and preserving Lebanon’s sovereignty, security, stability and in protecting its borders.”
President Michel Aoun was briefed by army commander Gen. Joseph Aoun and top security officials on security developments in Arsal.
In a statement, the president praised the “preparedness of the army to repel any attack on Lebanese territories and protect the residents and the displaced people.”
Hezbollah said it is making progress in areas controlled by JFS, while areas controlled by Daesh have not yet witnessed clashes.
Hezbollah said it is in “full control” of Wadi Al-Khail, which it described as “the bastion” JFS. Hezbollah reported “a state of collapse and chaos” among JFS ranks.
Hezbollah urged all militants in Arsal “to hand themselves over with a guarantee of their safety and protection, as the battle appears to be on the verge of ending.”
Lebanese PM declares Hezbollah battles in Arsal illegitimate
Lebanese PM declares Hezbollah battles in Arsal illegitimate
Iran foreign ministry affirms support for Syria’s sovereignty
- Assad fled Syria earlier this month as rebel forces led by the Sunni Islamist group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) entered the capital Damascus
“Our principled position on Syria is very clear: preserving the sovereignty and integrity of Syria and for the people of Syria to decide on its future without destructive foreign interference,” foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said in a weekly press briefing.
He added that the country should not “become a haven for terrorism,” saying such an outcome would have “repercussions” for countries in the region.
Assad fled Syria earlier this month as rebel forces led by the Sunni Islamist group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) entered the capital Damascus after a lightning offensive.
The takeover by HTS — proscribed as a terrorist organization by many governments including the United States — has sparked concern, though the group has in recent years sought to moderate its image.
Headed by Ahmed Al-Sharaa, Syria’s new leader and an ardent opponent of Iran, the group has spoken out against the Islamic republic’s influence in Syria under Assad.
Tehran helped prop up Assad during Syria’s long civil war, providing him with military advisers.
During Monday’s press briefing, Baqaei said Iran had “no direct contact” with Syria’s new rulers.
Sharaa has received a host of foreign delegations since coming to power.
He met on Sunday with Turkish foreign minister Hakan Fidan, and on Monday with Jordan’s top diplomat Ayman Safadi.
On Friday, the United States’ top diplomat for the Middle East Barbara Leaf held a meeting with Sharaa, later saying she expected Syria would completely end any role for Iran in its affairs.
A handful of European delegations have also visited in recent days.
Regional powerhouse Saudi Arabia, which has long supported Syria’s opposition, is expected to send a delegation soon, according to Syria’s ambassador in Riyadh.
Iran says ‘no direct contact’ with Syria rulers
- Foreign ministry spokesman: ‘We have no direct contact with the ruling authority in Syria’
“We have no direct contact with the ruling authority in Syria,” foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said at a weekly press briefing.
Jordan foreign minister holds talks with Syria’s new leader
- It was the first visit by a senior Jordanian official since Bashar Assad’s fall
AMMAN: Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi met with Syria’s new leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa in Damascus on Monday, Amman said, the latest high-profile visit since Bashar Assad’s ouster.
Images distributed by the Jordanian foreign ministry showed Safadi and Sharaa shaking hands, without offering further details about their meeting.
A foreign ministry statement earlier said that Safadi would meet with the new Syrian leader as well as with “several Syrian officials.”
It was the first visit by a senior Jordanian official since Assad’s fall.
Jordan, which borders Syria to the south, hosted a summit earlier this month where top Arab, Turkish, EU and US diplomats called for an inclusive and peaceful transition after years of civil war.
Sharaa, whose Islamist group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) spearheaded the offensive that toppled Assad on December 8, has welcomed senior officials from a host of countries in the Middle East and beyond in recent days.
Jordanian government spokesman Mohamed Momani told reporters on Sunday that Amman “sides with the will of the brotherly Syrian people,” stressing the close ties between the two nations.
Momani said the kingdom would like to see security and stability restored in Syria, and supported “the unity of its territories.”
Stability in war-torn Syria was in Jordan’s interests, Momani said, and would “ensure security on its borders.”
Some Syrians who had fled the war since 2011 and sought refuge in Jordan have begun returning home, according to Jordanian authorities.
The interior ministry said Thursday that more than 7,000 Syrians had left, out of some 1.3 million refugees Amman says it has hosted.
According to the United Nations, 680,000 Syrian refugees were registered with it in Jordan.
Jordan in recent years has tightened border controls in a crackdown on drug and weapon smuggling along its 375-kilometer border with Syria.
One of the main drugs smuggled is the amphetamine-like stimulant captagon, for which there is huge demand in the oil-rich Gulf.
Israeli airstrikes on Gaza kill at least 20 people, Palestinian medics say
- Israel’s air and ground offensive has killed over 45,200 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry till date
Palestinian medics say Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip have killed at least 20 people.
One of the strikes overnight and into Monday hit a tent camp in the Muwasi area, an Israel-declared humanitarian zone, killing eight people, including two children. That’s according to the Nasser Hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis, which received the bodies.
Hospital records show another six killed in a strike on people securing an aid convoy and another two killed in a strike on a car in Muwasi. One person was killed in a separate strike in the area.
The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the central city of Deir Al-Balah said three bodies arrived after an airstrike on a school-turned-shelter in the built-up Nuseirat refugee camp.
The Israeli military says it only strikes militants, accusing them of hiding among civilians. It said late Sunday that it had targeted a Hamas militant in the humanitarian zone.
The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 250 hostage. Around 100 captives are still inside Gaza, at least a third of whom are believed to be dead.
Israel’s air and ground offensive has killed over 45,200 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The ministry says women and children make up more than half the dead but does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its tally. The military says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence.
South Sudan overwhelmed by refugee influx: MSF
- Sudan is suffering one of the world’s worst humanitarian emergencies since conflict broke out in April 2023
NAIROBI: The situation on South Sudan’s border was “completely overwhelming” as thousands flee war-torn Sudan each day, Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warned Monday.
The medical charity said up to 5,000 people were crossing the border every day. The United Nations recently put it even higher at 7-10,000 daily.
Sudan is suffering one of the world’s worst humanitarian emergencies since conflict broke out in April 2023 between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, with tens of thousands killed and millions displaced.
An MSF emergency coordinator in Renk town, near a transit center holding some 17,000 people according to the UN, said they were working with the International Committee of the Red Cross to provide care.
“But the situation is completely overwhelming and it’s not enough,” said Emanuele Montobbio.
Facilities had been expanded to accommodate the arrival of war wounded, he said, but they were unable to treat everyone.
“Over 100 wounded patients, many with serious injuries, still await surgery,” Montobbio said.
Bashir Ismail, from Mosmon in Blue Nile state, was recovering in hospital in Renk after an air raid.
“Something hit me in the chest — it was the most painful experience of my life,” he said.
“I was so disoriented that it felt like I had lost my memory.”
MSF South Sudan’s deputy medical coordinator Roselyn Morales said thousands who had crossed faced “critical shortages of food and shelter, clean water, shelter and health care.”
South Sudan is ill-equipped to handle the arrival of thousands seeking shelter from war, with the young country itself battling violence, endemic poverty and natural disasters.
Alhida Hammed fled to Renk after his village was attacked and he was shot in Sudan’s Blue Nile state.
“The houses were blazing, and everyone was running in different directions,” he said.
He now has no shelter and is living under a tree, but does not want to return to Sudan.
“Home is no longer a home — it is filled with bad memories.”
