Security sources told Al-Akhbar that the army will deal “with the armed terrorist groups in a tougher manner.” The sources said the army will target any suspicious movements to prevent attacks on army positions in the hills in the region between Ersal, Ras Baalbek, and al-Qaa.
A cautious calm had prevailed in the rugged hills near Ras Baalbek in the past two days, after a battle there that security sources said were “the most violent yet to be fought by the army against terrorist groups.”
“The army has the ability to efface terrorism from our national map no matter how much blood and sacrifice this costs us.” - Staff Colonel Ibrahim Tarou
In contrast to the calm in Ras Baalbek, there was tension and bombardment of the amusement park area in Ersal by the army in Wadi Hammid
An army outpost had spotted movements by armed formations on the outskirts of the town, who were driving a bulldozer in an attempt to clear roads in the rugged regions nearby.
According to sources, the army opened fire at the militants. Their vehicle and bulldozer were destroyed, killing all those inside.
Military units from the Mobile Regiment and the Border Guard combed the area surrounding al-Hamra hill that had seen fierce clashes on Friday. Engineering units restored defenses and fortifications at the hill which had been damaged in Friday’s attacks.
According to reports, the attackers had tried to steal bodies belonging to army martyrs, “but the heavy bombardment of the rear lines of the militants prevented it.”
On Saturday, the army was able to recover three bodies belonging to its martyrs, named as Ahmed Yahya Dani (born in 1988, Saadnayel, Zahleh district); Hassan Ali Wehbeh (1991, Nabha, Baalbek); and Mujtaba Imad Amhaz (1993, Maqneh, Baalbek). The army also retrieved the bodies of five militants, including that of Ghayath Jumaa better known as Abu al-Walid, commander of the Wa A’idu (Be Prepared) brigade, which reportedly had pledged allegiance to ISIS.
A funeral was held in the town of Saadnayel on Sunday for slain officer Dani. Thousands of people from the towns of the central and western Bekaa took part in the procession, led by Staff Colonel Ibrahim Tarou, representing Defense Minister Samir Muqbel and Army Commander Jean Qahwaji. Tarou said, “The army has the ability to efface terrorism from our national map no matter how much blood and sacrifice this costs us.”
For his part, the mayor of Saadnayel Khalil al-Shuhaimi said, “The blood of the martyr will be a curse haunting its killers and those who caused his death and the deaths of many of our children in the military.”
Along the same vein, a funeral was held for slain soldier Wehbeh in his hometown of Nabha, and another for slain soldier Amhaz in Beirut. Funerals had been held for the five other martyrs the army had named on Friday in their respective villages.
This article is an edited translation from the Arabic Edition.
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