Al-Hurra: Lebanon Surrendered a Defected Syrian Army Officer to Bashar Assad's Government

The news network "Al-Hurra" reported that Lebanon has surrendered a defected officer from the Syrian army to Bashar Assad's government. Lebanese army intelligence patrols raided the tent of Abdullah Al-Zahouri, a defected officer from the Syrian army, on June 28 and arrested him. Mr. Al-Zahouri's relatives later announced that he had been handed over to the Syrian government and that his life is in danger. Abdullah Al-Zahouri held the rank of captain and operated in the Qusayr region in the outskirts of Homs province in central Syria. The Syrian army, with the support of Hezbollah, has regained control of this area from the opposition. Two sources close to Al-Zahouri, who wished to remain anonymous, told Al-Hurra that since fleeing to Lebanon with his wife and children, he had been living in a tent in the Al-Mal'ab camp in the Arsal region of Lebanon. In recent years, Al-Zahouri had been working in stone cutting, and his relatives emphasize that he had abandoned any political or military activities. According to Al-Zahouri's relatives, the Lebanese army intelligence handed him over to one of the Syrian security agencies without surrendering him to the country's General Security, which is responsible for foreigners in Lebanon. Al-Hurra attempted to contact Colonel Misbah Khalil, head of the information office of the Lebanese army intelligence, but he declined to comment on the matter. Nour Al-Khateeb, head of the prisoners department at the "Syrian Human Rights Network," confirmed the news of Al-Zahouri's arrest by the Lebanese army intelligence, stating that his fate remains unknown and that this agency is seeking confirmation of his surrender to the Syrian government. Rami Abdulrahman, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, also confirmed the news of Al-Zahouri's arrest by the Lebanese army intelligence. Al-Zahouri and his wife and children are among the registered Syrian refugees with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The Syrian Observatory reported last April that Lebanese security agencies had arrested and tortured several Syrians in recent months and surrendered them to their country's security agencies, some of whom were opposition activists.