Five suspected terrorists were arrested outside the northeastern border town of Arsal Monday night, after the group attempted to infiltrate Lebanese territory, a security source said. Five defected soldiers from the Syrian army were hiding out in a Syrian refugee camp in the area of Wadi Hmayed, outside of Arsal. They were arrested at an Army checkpoint in the area after they attempted to enter the town. The men are suspected of belonging to jihadi group The Nusra Front. One of the suspects was previously a high ranking officer in the Syrian army. Monday's arrest is the latest move in in a bid to insulate the volatile border town from the threat of Syrian militants, who have been holed up in the mountains surrounding Arsal since spring 2014, when they were driven out by Hezbollah and the Syrian army from Syria's Qalamoun mountain range. Army Commander Gen.Jean Kahwagi said in a published report earlier this month that the military has wrested control over all geographical crossings linking Arsal to its outskirts, asserting that it was impossible for Syrian jihadis to infiltrate the town. A 750-strong military force entered the volatile border town earlier this month and combed the entire area, he said. The Army has also formed a line of defense that stretches across several peaks and rugged terrain in the northern Bekaa Valley, he noted, assuring that militant movements can easily be detected from the military's strategic posts.
