Search
Search

SMUGGLING

Bassil calls for end to cross-border smuggling following solider's death


Bassil calls for end to cross-border smuggling following solider's death

Leade of the Free Patriotic Movement Gebran Bassil. (Credit: AFP)

BEIRUT — The leader of the Free Patriotic Movement, Gebran Bassil, commented Sunday on the death of a Lebanese soldier Saturday in armed clashes with traffickers on the northern border with Syria, calling for an end to smuggling and the securing of the border.

"Sergeant Mohammad Husseini and his injured colleague are symbols of the soldier who fights to extend the sovereignty of the state on its territory, against the dismantling of its institutions and to protect its border," Bassil  wrote on his Twitter account. "Prohibiting smuggling and securing the border is one of the conditions for establishing a state and protecting its resources," he added.

The border between Lebanon and Syria remains very porous, despite the installation of observation towers in recent years. This area remains the scene of an array of smuggling operations, and the army is struggling to fight against this trafficking.

BEIRUT — The leader of the Free Patriotic Movement, Gebran Bassil, commented Sunday on the death of a Lebanese soldier Saturday in armed clashes with traffickers on the northern border with Syria, calling for an end to smuggling and the securing of the border. "Sergeant Mohammad Husseini and his injured colleague are symbols of the soldier who fights to extend the sovereignty of the state on...