Lebanese Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq announced Monday that security agencies had thwarted terrorist plots that were set to target the parliamentary elections that were held in May.
He said that one plot sought to target a church and another sought to target the security forces and military during the elections in order to obstruct them.
“The complex security operation lasted nearly a full year and reasserted the idea of a secure Lebanon for residents and visitors,” Mashnouq told a press conference at the Internal Security Forces general directorate. The briefing was attended by ISF chief Imad Othman.
In detailing the plots, the minister said that the main member of the operation was a resident of Lebanon. He communicated with a terrorist operations center in Syria’s Idlib. The contacts were ongoing for 10 months. The ISIS terrorist group tasked him to carry out the attack on the day of the elections, which took place on May 6.
The attack was thwarted and he was then tasked with another one. His handlers were killed however, and his new contact asked him to travel to Turkey after which the ISF decided to act.
Mashnouq remarked that the ISF operation was “remarkable” because it remained undetected for ten months. The security forces succeeded throughout this period in obstructing the plots of the terrorist group.
Moreover, he revealed that the terrorist explosives operator had transported explosives to Lebanon twice, each time in a cheese container. He was tasked with building and detonating the bomb in Lebanon.
“Beirut is the most secure of capitals and it alone, through the efforts of the security agencies, succeeded in thwarting terrorism,” Mashnouq continued.
He stressed that the ISF Intelligence Bureau was carrying out its duties away from political tensions because its main mission is to safeguard the security of the Lebanese regardless of their affiliations.
