Thousands of Syrian fighters and refugees in Lebanon's border region were set to be transferred into rebel territory in Syria in exchange for Hezbollah prisoners on Tuesday.
ADVERTISEMENTThousands of Syrian fighters and refugees in Lebanon’s border region were set to be transferred into rebel territory in Syria in exchange for Hezbollah prisoners on Tuesday.
Convoys of buses arrived on Monday to facilitate the transfer, which will see about 9,000 Sunni Muslim miltants and their relatives leave Lebanon.
The local ceasefire deal between the two sides will see the departure of all Jabhat Fateh al-Sham militants from around the town of Arsal, along with any civilians in nearby refugee camps who wish to go.
The first stage of the deal, brokered by Lebanon’s internal security agency, unfolded on Sunday, as the two sides exchanged the corpses of dead fighters.
Lebanon’s Hezbollah has played a major role in fighting rebels along the border since the beginning of Syria’s six-year civil war.
Last week it reclaimed most of the mountainous region of Juroud Arsal with help from the Syrian army, driving Jabhat Fateh al-Sham – formerly known as al-Nusra Front – from its last foothold in the border lands.