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Lebanese authorities detain militant Islamist cleric
Sunni Muslim Salafist leader Ahmed al-Assir is escorted by his bodyguards after his speech to supporters during a demonstration in solidarity with Syria's anti-government protesters, in Beirut, March 4, 2012. PHOTO BY REUTERS/Jamal Saidi
By Laila Bassam
15/08/2015
BEIRUT (Reuters) - Lebanese authorities detained a militant Sunni Islamist cleric wanted for attacks on the Lebanese army as he tried to flee the country on Saturday, security officials said.
Sheikh Ahmed al-Assir was arrested at Beirut airport as he tried to depart using a forged passport. He had undergone surgery to change his appearance, the officials said.
Assir rose to prominence with the onset of the civil war in neighboring Syria that fueled sectarian tensions between Lebanese Sunnis and Shi'ites.
Charges against him include forming a terrorist organization and inciting violence against the army.
In 2013, 12 Lebanese soldiers were killed when they stormed a mosque complex belonging to Assir in the southern city of Sidon. Assir's supporters accused the army of siding with the Lebanese Shi'ite group Hezbollah, which is fighting in Syria alongside the government against a Sunni-led insurgency.
(Reporting by Laila Bassam; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
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