Nusra Front Militants Start to Withdraw From Lebanon to Syria

BEIRUT (Sputnik) — The Lebanese army let in a first convoy of buses to the region of Aarsal on the Lebanese-Syrian border for evacuation of the Jabhat Fatah al Sham (formerly known as Nusra Front, outlawed in Russia) terrorists and their families to northern Syria, according to the source.

"The Lebanese army has started to let the buses pass to the last meeting point in the mountainous region of Aarsal, where the militants and members of their families will be withdrawn from," the source said.

The source noted that the bus convoys, accompanied by the Red Cross and vehicles of the Red Crescent, headed from the Aarsal region to the Syrian Flita area, before continuing onward to follow the convoys to Aleppo in Syria for an exchange of hostages.

"An exchange should take place in Aleppo. The Nusra Front militants will be included in the exchange of [Hezbollah] movement prisoners," the source said.

On July 21, the Hezbollah movement announced the launch of a military operation against the Jabhat Fatah al Sham in Aarsal region. As part of the first stage of the agreement between the parties, Hezbollah handed over on Sunday the bodies of nine terrorists to the Jabhat Fatah al Sham, in exchange for the bodies of its five fighters killed by the terror group. The second stage of the agreement presupposes the withdrawal of a total of 9,000 Jabhat Fatah al Sham terrorists and their families, in exchange for the release of the Hezbollah fighters kept hostage by the terrorists.

Aarsal is considered the tensest of the regions on the Lebanese-Syrian border. It has been used for arms smuggling and the transit of new terrorist recruits to Syria. It also houses several camps for thousands of Syrian refugees.