HTS arrests 13 Syrians returning from Lebanon to Northwest Syria
IDLIB, Syria (North Press) – The Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS, once known as al-Nusra Front), arrested on Saturday 13 people, including five women, among the displaced Syrians returning from Lebanon to Northwest Syria under accusations of collaborating with the Lebanese Hezbollah.
A source from HTS’ General Security Service (GSS) told North Press that some of the detainees were transferred to a special wing in Harem Prison in the north of Idlib after “It was confirmed that they had links to Hezbollah.”
The source also added that the detained men and women are expected to undergo further security screening by Turkish intelligence, despite having already passed security checks at the Awn Dadat crossing.
This additional scrutiny was requested by the Turkish side under the pretext of “protecting Turkish national security,” the source noted.
A day earlier, factions of the Sultan Murad Division and Levant Front (al-Jabha al-Shamiya) affiliated with the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) launched an arrest campaign targeting displaced people fleeing Lebanon.
They arrested 95 people as they entered through the Awn Dadat crossing in the Jarablus countryside, north of Aleppo.