Dubai: Syria’s army on Wednesday entered Al Hosn in the central province of Homs and was fighting for control of the famed Krak des Chevaliers castle, a security official said.

Krak des Chevaliers, built between 1142 and 1271 and considered one of the best preserved Crusader castles in existence, has already sustained damage from previous fighting between rebels and regime forces during Syria’s three-year conflict.

“The army entered Al Hosn and took two districts of the village. It is bombarding areas around the Krak des Chevaliers to take control of the castle,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Syria’s state news agency meanwhile said the army had carried out an ambush of opposition forces west of the nearby town of Zara, which it captured on March 8.

The army was also engaged in continuing clashes in the Qalamoun region, along the border with Lebanon, where it captured the rebel bastion of Yabrud on Sunday.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based NGO, reported fierce fighting between regime and rebel forces at a checkpoint near the town of Rankus, south of Yabrud.

It said regime troops backed by Lebanon’s Hezbollah and pro-regime militia were also fighting rebel and jihadist forces around the villages of Bkhaa and Jobeh in Qalamoun region.

Freed prisoners

Elsewhere, the Observatory said rebels had taken control of the central Gharaz prison in southern Daraa province, freeing an unspecified number of prisoners. And in Eastern Ghouta, a suburb of the capital Damascus, the Observatory said two children had died because of food and medical shortages and dire living conditions caused by a regime siege of more than a year.

Lebanon’s army deployed in a tense town near the Syrian border early Wednesday, reopening the main road after its closure sparked sectarian tension across the country. Arsal had been sealed off by residents from the neighbouring town of Labweh, where one person was killed last week by rocket fire. The closure of the main road out of Arsal had prompted fury in other parts of Lebanon, and many took to streets across the country on Tuesday night to burn tyres in protest.

One person was shot dead at one of the demonstrations in Beirut, prompting some lawmakers to call for an investigation on Wednesday. In the wake of the tensions, Lebanese President Michel Sulaiman met Wednesday with Prime Minister Tammam Salam and top security officials.

Residents of Labweh blame residents of Arsal for rocket fire on their town, although it was reported to have originated across the border in Syria. Tensions between residents of the two towns have increased since the fall of the Syrian rebel bastion Yabrud, just across the frontier, on Sunday.

Yabrud’s capture prompted an exodus of Syrian civilians as well as rebel fighters, with many taking refuge in or around Arsal, where residents are sympathetic towards the Syrian uprising. During the night, residents blocked roads in Beirut, along the coast and in the Beqaa valley to protest what they called a “siege” of Arsal by Labweh residents.

Sectarian tensions

The army arrived early Wednesday and reopened the road, Arsal municipal council member Bakr Houjairi said.

“So far the situation is very calm, we will see what will happen later, but we are happy to see the army here and opening the road up,” he said.

The war in neighbouring Syria has exacerbated existing sectarian tensions in Lebanon, particularly between Sunni and Shiite residents. Many Sunni Lebanese back the Sunni-dominated Syrian uprising, while Shiites support Lebanon’s powerful Shiite Hezbollah movement, which is allied with Syria’s regime and fighting alongside it.

The border region has become particularly fragile, with Arsal hosting some 51,000 civilian refugees and facing accusations that it allows rebel fighters to establish bases in the area around it.

The northern city of Tripoli has also seen frequent battles pitting Alawite supporters of Syrian President Bashar Al Assad against Sunni backers of Syria’s rebels. On Wednesday, a man died of gunshot wounds, seven days into clashes in Tripoli, taking the total death toll from the latest round of fighting to 13, according to a security source.

 

Compiled from agencies