Syrian refugees returning to Syria via the Arida border crossing in northern Lebanon, in October 2025. (Credit: Mohammad Yassin/L'Orient-Le Jour)
The Lebanese Army announced it had carried out a series of arrests in the Bekaa and along the Lebanese-Syrian border, targeting 38 Syrian nationals accused of entering Lebanese territory illegally.
This operation was conducted "against homes and Syrian camps," the army statement said, specifying that "36 people were arrested in the Ghazze area [West Bekaa] for illegal entry into Lebanese territory, and two others in the Talia camp, in Baalbeck, for the same reason."
The army added that it had seized "two rifles in their possession" and handed those arrested over to the competent authorities for questioning.
Exceptional measures taken last spring by General Security lifted certain restrictions on crossing the border between Lebanon and Syria for Syrian nationals.
This exemption, which will expire on Dec. 31 of this year, was intended to encourage the return of Syrian refugees still residing in Lebanon during the year following the fall of the Assad regime.
According to the latest estimates from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), more than 400,000 of these refugees have returned to their country of origin from Lebanon, not counting Syrians who do not have this status and are not registered on the UNHCR lists.
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