By infiltrating phones, tracking communications and piecing together intelligence across the border, Lebanese and Syrian security authorities uncovered a cell accused of plotting attacks inside Syria.
The operation offers a rare window into a growing security partnership between Beirut and Damascus, as they pursue networks linked to the former Syrian regime and look to curb Hezbollah's influence.
The cell included Lebanese and Syrian nationals, among them a colonel in the intelligence services under former president Bashar Al Assad, according to local reports.
Some members were also trained by Iran-backed Hezbollah, the reports said.
However, a Lebanese security source told The National that an investigation was still under way and that it was not yet clear whether the suspects had received training in Lebanon or who, if anyone, was backing the group.
“The cell was arrested in co-ordination with the Syrian authorities. It's the perfect security scenario to open the door for more arrests of former regime officers,” the Lebanese security source said.
Improving relations
Lebanon and Syria have been taking steps to improve bilateral relations and strengthen security along their shared border, where tensions persist over weapons smuggling, the movement of former Syrian regime figures and the presence of armed groups.
A Syrian source who was previously involved in tracking former regime officers said the arrests followed intelligence gathered electronically by Syrian security services and shared with their Lebanese counterparts.
The work has been led by an “anti-remnants” division within the Counter Terrorism Department of Syria’s Interior Ministry, which is based in the Kafr Sousa district of Damascus, the source added.
Syrian commander Abdulrahman Al Dabbagh has been leading the intelligence operation and has held meetings with Lebanese security officials in Beirut, according to the source.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun has also been working to strengthen intelligence co-operation with Damascus. Relations between Lebanon and Syria have been sensitive for years, shaped in part by Syria’s military presence in Lebanon during and after the 1975–1990 civil war. Syrian troops withdrew in 2005 following the assassination of former prime minister Rafik Hariri.
The new Syrian government has also sought to improve relations with Beirut, emphasising co-ordination on border security, curbing smuggling and the demarcation of the frontier.
Syria sent troops to its border with Lebanon after the Iran war broke out six months ago to prevent weapons from being smuggled to Hezbollah. The militia has shelled Syrian territory during at least one incident along the frontier.
President Ahmad Al Shara’s forces fought Hezbollah during the Syrian civil war, when the Iran-backed group intervened in support of the Assad regime.
Security co-operation has taken on greater importance during the US-brokered push by the Lebanese state to disarm Hezbollah.
“The tensions were followed by a US-drive to cool the situation and make the two [official] sides co-operate,” the source said, citing progress this year on the release of Syrian detainees from Lebanese jails.
