A deadly ambush against Lebanese army troops in the eastern region of Baalbek mid-December has brought back under the spotlight areas untouched by the country’s law enforcement.
Baalbek-Hermel, which lies near the Syrian border in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, is widely under the influence of clans. According to the area’s governor Bashir Khodr, there are 37,000 arrest warrants against 1,200 wanted individuals.
The Lebanese army has been lately active in confronting outlaws in the area, which witnessed an unprecedented deterioration in the security situation in the aftermath of the parliamentary elections last May.
In their attempts to activate a security plan, troops have come under continuous attacks by wanted gunmen. In November, four notorious fugitives were killed in a gunfight during a Lebanese army raid in Baalbek’s al-Sharawneh neighborhood. Among the dead was Ali Jaafar, who had 200 warrants against him.
Yet, the outlaws, most of whom belong to clans, have resorted to vengeance, ambushing troops in several towns in Baalbek-Hermel.
According to military sources, security agencies have arrested 2,324 fugitives in Baalbek-Hermel in the first six months of 2018, a high rate compared to 2017 when 2,349 individuals were detained throughout the year.
Former Baalbek MP Kamel al-Rifai claims that the lawlessness in the region is caused by a high unemployment rate. He says any security plan should go in tandem with development projects.
Speaker Nabih Berri said in August that parliament is considering legalizing the cultivation of cannabis for medical purposes.
To help transform the economy, Lebanon this year engaged consultancy firm McKinsey to come up with a plan for productive sectors.
One of the options explored by the report was for Lebanon to legalize cannabis cultivation for export for medical use.
Although growing the plant is illegal in Lebanon, powerful landowners nevertheless have for decades openly grown fields of cannabis in the fertile Bekaa Valley, untouched by law enforcement and its attempts to crack down.
In the Bekaa, farmers welcome legalization, saying it would bring badly needed jobs.
Not only the valley has long been notorious as an area untouched by law enforcement. Palestinian refugee camps across Lebanon are a breeding ground for extremists and gunmen because the army does not enter the shantytowns by long-standing convention.
Joint Palestinian security forces are in charge of keeping security in the 12 camps, including Ain el-Hilweh, al-Baddawi and Bourj al-Barajneh that include the highest concentration of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon.
Ain el-Hilweh, which lies near the southern coastal city of Sidon, is notorious for harboring dozens of fugitives from different nationalities. It has come under the close watch of international intelligence agencies over fears that wanted terrorists would escape from the shantytown and infiltrate other countries.
Many gunmen, who had previously taken refuge in the camp, have escaped to Syria in the past years after coming under pressure by joint Palestinian factions.
The camp of Mieh Mieh, which oversees Sidon, is not any better. In October, deadly clashes between Fatah movement and Ansarallah group left dozens of casualties.
“Strong Lebanon” bloc MP Antoine Pano, who is a retired army general, says the crackdown on hotbeds of extremism and lawlessness requires a single approach and a unified security plan across Lebanon.
The state should enjoy law enforcement on all its territories, he told Asharq Al-Awsat.
The head of Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis (INEGMA), Riyad Qahwaji said that as long as some armed factions continue to enjoy political support, security agencies would not be able to eliminate them.
Several groups, such as the Resistance Brigades, remained armed under the excuse of being affiliated with the “Resistance” or Hezbollah, which is the only Lebanese party that failed to hand over its weapons to the state at the end of the civil war, he said.
The hotbeds of militancy could either be large areas, such as the Hezbollah stronghold of Beirut’s southern suburbs, or small neighborhoods, he told Asharq Al-Awsat. Either way, security forces are unable to enter them.
