Evacuation Deal of Saraya Ahl al-Sham from Arsal's Outskirts Delayed

An agreement deal reportedly set to see the evacuation of rebels and displaced Syrians from the outskirts of the northeastern border town of Arsal to Syria's East al-Qalamoun has been delayed, the National News Agency reported Saturday.

Saraya Ahl al-Sham rebel groups and displaced Syrians were set to evacuate Arsal's outskirts, but the deal was delayed when the militants insisted on using their (military) vehicles to move to Syria, NNA said.

The Lebanese side is working on overcoming the obstacle, added the news agency.

Quoting Hizbullah's War Media outlet, VDL (93.3) said: “Implementation of the agreement to move fighters of Saraya Ahl al-Sham and displaced Syrians from Arsal's outskirts to the eastern Qalamon has been delayed because of a logistical problem related to their transfer.”

As part of the deal between Hizbullah, the Lebanese negotiator General Security chief Abbas Ibrahim, and the rebel group, the fighters are supposed to head to the government-held town of Ruhaiba, about 50 kilometers northeast of the Syrian capital Damascus where they will benefit from an amnesty by the regime and return to normal life.

The evacuation deal follows a military offensive by Hizbullah fighters and Syrian troops during which they captured border areas between the two countries and left hundreds of Nusra fighters besieged in a small rugged mountainous area.

The fighting ended with a ceasefire and an exchange deal that saw the release of three Hizbullah hostages captured by Nusra.