The jihadists of the Islamic State have seized their first territory inside Lebanon, a long-feared strike that hits at the heart of the country’s uneasy sectarian balance.
A Syrian rebel group which has sworn allegiance to the Islamic State’s leader has set up check-points in the town of Arsal on the two countries’ border, though it has stopped short of declaring it part of the organisation’s “Caliphate”.
Lebanese army troops have moved up to attack the town, firing shells and putting at risk not only the 40,000 local inhabitants but the estimated 120,000 Syrian refugees who have taken shelter there.
The crisis brought a rare show of unity from Lebanon’s competing political factions, with the Sunni prime minister Tammam Salam standing alongside the rest of the cabinet to give a statement. “The attack on Lebanese national dignity will not go unpunished,” he said, calling Islamic State’s behaviour “sick”. » | Carol Malouf in Arsal and Richard Spencer, Middle East correspondent | Monday, August 04, 2014
