SIDON, Lebanon: Lebanese Army Intelligence arrested Friday five Syrian nationals in the southern town of Nabatieh as they were preparing explosives to be used against mourners commemorating the occasion of Ashoura Sunday, security sources told The Daily Star.
The five Syrians were arrested in al-Maslakh neighborhood of Nabatieh.
Lebanese Shiites commemorate the death of Imam Hussein, Prophet Mohammad’s grandson, by holding mass rallies in Beirut’s southern suburbs, the Bekaa, and several towns in the south. The town of Nabatieh usually hosts the biggest such rally in the southern part of the country.
A statement posted on a website affiliated to Al-Qaeda had threatened earlier this year to target Shiites in Lebanon over the alleged role of Hezbollah in backing President Bashar Assad