Nusra Decides Against Executing Bazzal as Cabinet to Hold Direct Negotiations with Captors

The al-Qaida-affiliated al-Nusra Front retracted late on Friday its decision to execute captive soldier Ali al-Bazzal after conflicting reports emerged over his fate, reported the daily An Nahar on Saturday.

Health Minister Wael Abou Faour confirmed the extremist group's decision, saying it has postponed the execution.

“The cabinet meanwhile stresses its serious efforts to resolve the case of captive servicemen through holding direct and immediate negotiations with the kidnappers and halting any action that may threaten their lives and safety,” he emphasized.

Conflicting reports emerged Friday evening on whether or not al-Nusra Front had backed down from its threat to execute Bazzal, as the General Security announced that the Qatari mediator will return to Lebanon “in the coming hours.”

“The General Security communicated with the Qatari side, which informed General Security chief Major General Abbas Ibrahim that the Qatari mediator will return again to Lebanon in the coming hours,” state-run National News Agency reported.

“Following contacts and efforts by Ibrahim, al-Nusra Front backed down from its threat to behead captive soldier Ali al-Bazzal,” NNA added.

Al-Nusra had on Thursday threatened to execute Bazzal within 24 hours if the Lebanese government did not start what it called “serious negotiations.”

It also called on the Lebanese authorities to release Jumana Hmayyed, who was arrested near Arsal in February while driving a booby-trapped car that entered Lebanon from Syria's Yabrud region.

Al-Joumhouria newspaper meanwhile reported on Saturday that the Qatari negotiator, Ahmed al-Khatib, will head to Lebanon within 48 hours.

He has commenced his contacts from Qatar with the kidnappers in order to ease the tensions surrounding the case of the servicemen, it added.

For its part, al-Nusra Front informed the negotiator that it is expecting him and that it will not take any measure before his arrival in Lebanon.

Sources from the crisis cell tackling the abduction expressed to al-Joumhouria their disappointment with the manner in which some sides are meddling in the file since they are not well informed of the details of the negotiations.

“They are directly or indirectly manipulating the file instead of helping resolve the issue,” they explained.

They warned that maintaining such an approach will take the negotiations with the captors back to square one.

A number of soldiers and policemen were abducted from the northeastern border town of Arsal in August following clashes between the army and Islamist gunmen from Syria.

A few of them have since been released, three were executed, while the rest are still being held by the Islamic State and al-Nusra Front groups.

The families of the captives have repeatedly expressed their anger with the cabinet for failing to resolve the case.

They staged rallies in Beirut on Friday to pressure the government to take more action.

Voice of Lebanon radio (93.3) reported that the families had called on “honorable citizens” to join them in a protest in Beirut's Riad al-Solh square at 10:00 am on Saturday.

Later during the day, the families headed towards Beirut's Saifi district to present flowers to security forces in a sign of support in light of scuffles that erupted on Friday between them as they were rallying in the capital.

The Islamic State and al-Nusra Front have been demanding the release of a number of Islamist inmates held in Roumieh prison in exchange for the captive soldiers and policemen.

Al-Joumhouria reported that judicial authorities have been working on speeding up the trials of the Islamists.

M.T.

D.A.