One of the men injured by a mine in Wadi Khaled, carried on a stretcher by the Lebanese Red Cross. (Courtesy of: Michel Hallak)
BEIRUT — An 18-year-old Syrian man was killed and two others injured by landmines early Wednesday morning as they attempted to enter Lebanon informally via the remote Wadi Khaled region, security and medical sources told L'Orient Today's correspondent in the north.
The young men reportedly set off the mines as they tried to cross the irregular Obeidan crossing point, near the town of Armouta on the Lebanese side of Nahr al-Kabir.
The Lebanese Army confirmed the incident later on Wednesday morning, adding that "two land mines exploded on the Syrian side of the border, wounding three Syrians who were trying to illegally cross into Lebanon."
As a result of the accident, 18-year-old Youssef Hussein Jalout lost his left leg, while 27-year-old Bachar Ibrahim Oueijane was injured in the back, sources from a nearby hospital and the Lebanese Red Cross told L'Orient Today. Hussein Aouad Oueijane, 18, was in critical condition Wednesday morning, with a neck injury and after having his left leg and right arm amputated.
Oueijane later died of his injuries.
Following the incident, the three men were transported by the Lebanese Red Cross to Our Lady of Peace Hospital in Qobeiyat, a nearby town in Akkar governorate, with the help of local residents.