Syria Launches Airstrikes Against Site on Lebanese Side of Border

Missiles Hit Outside of Border Town of Arsal

Syrian warplanes fired four missiles today along the border with neighboring Lebanon, apparently chasing rebels in the area. Three of those missiles, however, landed inside of Lebanese territory, some 500 meters away from the border.

The report is that the missiles hit a farm field northeast of the town of Arsal around 10 am, causing no casualties but doing some damage to buildings on the farmland. There was no indication of further border incursions.

Lebanese President Michel Suleiman confirmed they have been in contact with Syria since the attack, but there have yet to be any official statements from the Syrian government on whether the strike into Lebanese territory was intentional or simply a “miss” along the frontier.

Syria’s rebels have regularly used Lebanon as a staging ground for operations, fueling sectarian tensions in the nation’s north, and bringing Syria’s military closer and closer to the border.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.