A car riddled with bullets at the scene of a shootout that occurred on the eastern border between Lebanon and Syria, on Aug. 26, 2025. (Credit: Sarah Abdallah)
A shooting exchange with smugglers from the Syrian village of Serghaya, on the eastern border of Lebanon near Jurd al-Khraybeh, left two people dead, including a Lebanese man, and one person injured, according to our correspondent in the region.
The Lebanese Zein Issa and another person of Syrian nationality were killed in the incident. A wounded Lebanese man, Fayez Issa, was transported to a hospital in the region.
The Lebanese Army deployed heavily at the border between Lebanon and Syria after the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime on Dec. 8, 2024, in an effort to address problems related to the porous border, as part of the fight against smuggling and trafficking on Lebanon's northern and eastern borders. In February and March, clashes related to smuggling operations broke out between Syrian security forces and Lebanese Shiite clan leaders living near the border.
The troops closed several illegal crossings in the Mashari al-Qaa region in mid-July. These routes were widely used for clandestine crossings, smuggling goods and fuel trafficking.
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