Arsal Municipal Chief Says Syrian, Not Qatari, Carrying out Negotiations over Captive Soldiers

The municipal chief of the northeastern border town of Arsal questioned the delay in the release of the soldiers and policemen held captive by Islamist militants, reported al-Liwaa newspaper on Saturday.

Ali al-Hujairi told the daily that a Syrian mediator, not a Qatari one, was leading the negotiations on the release of the abductees.

Moreover, he said that the town is coming under “immense pressure due to the presence of the army, security forces, Hizbullah members, and Syrian gunmen in the outskirts of the town.”

“We cannot resist the gunmen as we support the state and army,” Hujairi declared.

“We have no power over the gunmen and the interests of the residents of Arsal will be harmed,” he warned.

“Arsal is being targeted, it is not occupied because the army is deployed there,” he added.

He also questioned Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq's claims that Arsal needed to be liberated.

Hujairi instead called on Premier Tammam Salam, Mashnouq, Defense Minister Samir Moqbel, Free Patriotic Movement chief MP Michel Aoun, and the Hizbullah leadership to visit the town “to see the truth for themselves.”

Media reports on Friday said that Qatari mediators were negotiating the release of the captive security personnel.

A ministerial panel following up on the case of the abducted troops convened on Friday amid a boycott by the hostages' families, as the Islamic State group accused Qatari mediators of maneuvering and “obstructing the negotiations” before eventually meeting with them.

Earlier on Friday, the so-called Qalamun branch of the Islamic State said in a statement: “After having agreed to hold indirect negotiations with the Lebanese government ... (the IS) was surprised that the Qatari side … is procrastinating in the issue of meeting the IS' negotiators.”

The group held the Qatari delegation directly responsible for “obstructing the negotiations and for the lives of the troops.”

However, the IS later issued a statement confirming that it did meet with Qatari mediators and that "other parties" were obstructing the talks.

The group also announced that the Qatari delegation will be "the only channel of negotiations" and that it handed it a list containing its demands.

The delegation had arrived overnight Thursday in Lebanon before immediately heading to the Bekaa town of Arsal, which borders Syria.

Around 36 Lebanese soldiers and policemen were taken hostage last month after IS and Nusra gunmen overran Arsal during deadly battles with the Lebanese army.

Lebanon has been reportedly seeking the help of Qatar and Turkey to ensure their safe release.

The militants have released several hostages in different stages but they have also beheaded Lebanese army sergeant Ali al-Sayyed.

The jihadists have reportedly called on the Lebanese government to release Islamist inmates from the country's largest prison in Roumieh in exchange for the captive security personnel.

M.T.

D.A.