REPORT: Tension runs high between residents of Arsal and Maqneh regions

Tensions erupted on Monday in the northeastern border town of Arsal following a wave of mutual kidnapping operations between residents of Arsal and those of the neighbouring town of Maqneh.

The number of kidnapped persons rose to 10, while residents of Maqneh say the road leading to the town has become one of extreme danger.

This as the Lebanese Armed Forces are continuously patrolling the area in hopes of preventing further security breaches.

A wave of tit-for-tat kidnapping began on Sunday March 24, when Hussein Kamel al-Jaafar was kidnapped by unidentified assailants and reportedly taken into Syria.

In retaliation, the al-Jaafar clan of Baalbeck kidnapped persons from Arsal.

On Tuesday [April 2] the Lebanese armed forces deployed in the Sharawneh district of Baalbeck where the Jaafar clan resides in search of the captives.

The kidnappers of Hussein Kamel Jaafar, who is reportedly being held in Syria’s Yabroud village, have asked for a $1 million USD ransom, the National News Agency reported last Thursday.

This kidnapping wave has been deemed a direct spillover of the events taking place in Syria as towns supporting the uprising against the regime of Syrian President Bachar Assad and those opposing have been the scene of clashes and other security breaches.


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