Lebanese authorities arrested Sunni hard-line cleric Ahmad al-Assir over the weekend, ending a year-long manhunt following a deadly shootout with Lebanese security forces.
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Today Al-Alam correspondent according to Lebanon intelligence report that Salafist fugitive cleric Sheikh Ahmad Al-Assir arrested in Beirut airport.
He was using a fake Palestinian passport and had underwent a number of plastic surgeries to alter his appearance. The fighting killed 18 Lebanese soldiers and worsened sectarian tensions between Sunnis and Shiites who support opposing sides in neighboring Syria’s civil war.
Later Saturday about 25 female relatives and supporters of Al-Assir staged a protest in Sidon briefly blocking the highway linking south Lebanon and Beirut before being dispersed by police.
In 2014, a military court recommended prosecutors seek death sentences for al-Assir and 53 others, including former singer Fadel Shaker.
The clashes between his supporters and the army erupted on June 24, 2013, after they opened fire on a military checkpoint.
Although he was born to a Shia Muslim mother, his discourse was highly sectarian and he often accused Lebanon’s army of failing to protect Sunnis and being beholden to Hezbollah.
When the fighting was over, weapons including rocket launchers were found in Assir’s headquarters complex, which included a mosque, several office buildings and apartment blocks.
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He also rode his bike once through an anti-Hezbollah rally to inform his supporters of his talks with Lebanese officials.
