The Lebanese army announced the implementation of security measures along the northern and eastern borders with Syria, following skirmishes on the border between the two countries during the past three days.

The Lebanese army command stated in a statement released on Sunday, February 9, that military units continue to respond to sources of fire with appropriate weapons, while enhancing security surveillance through the intensification of military patrols, establishing new monitoring points, as well as setting up temporary barriers to control any suspicious movements.

The Lebanese army emphasized its continued commitment to taking necessary measures to protect Lebanese sovereignty and to confront any security threats, affirming that the command is closely monitoring developments and making appropriate decisions based on field updates.

For its part, the Lebanese National News Agency (NNA) reported on Sunday evening that a unit of the Lebanese army arrested 36 Syrians for wandering inside Lebanese territory illegally, in the area of Deir Ammar in northern Lebanon.

Another unit, supported by a patrol from the intelligence directorate, raided the homes of wanted individuals in the al-Salm neighborhood in the southern suburb and arrested citizens for drug trafficking, seizing a “large” quantity of drugs along with military weapons, without disclosing their nationalities.

In recent days, clashes occurred between the Syrian army and drug and weapon traffickers from Lebanese clans residing in villages and towns near the Syrian-Lebanese border in the rural area of al-Qusayr south of Homs, resulting in casualties on both sides.

The Lebanese army issued directives to its personnel to respond to what it described as sources of fire from Syria on Saturday, February 8.

In a statement on its official website, the Lebanese army announced that under the directives of President Joseph Aoun, the army command issued orders to military units deployed on the northern and eastern borders to respond to sources of fire that are launched from Syria targeting Lebanese territory.

The statement noted that Lebanese military units began responding with appropriate weapons, following recent clashes during which several Lebanese areas were subjected to shelling and gunfire.

Last Thursday, the Syrian Border Security Administration launched an extensive security campaign in the village of Hawik on the Syrian-Lebanese border, aiming to close smuggling routes for weapons and drugs, “as part of a comprehensive strategy to enhance the rule of law and curb illegal activities that negatively impact both the Syrian and Lebanese peoples.”

The campaign also resulted in the arrest of several wanted individuals involved in illegal smuggling operations, in addition to seizing quantities of weapons and drugs that were in their possession.

During the execution of the campaign, clashes occurred between border security forces and a number of wanted individuals, leading to the kidnapping of two elements from the military operations administration.

Shortly thereafter, the Border Security Administration managed to rescue the two elements who were kidnapped by a group of wanted individuals involved in smuggling weapons and drugs across the Syrian-Lebanese border.

For its part, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that the military operations administration conducted a sweeping operation in villages in the western rural area of Homs bordering Lebanon, focusing on the villages of Hawik, Blouza, al-Fadaliyah, Akoum, and the hills reaching the Lebanese border, to drive out armed groups, traffickers, and wanted individuals from drug dealers and figures close to Hezbollah.