8 Lebanese Truckers Enter Jordan, Efforts Ongoing to Unveil Fate of 9th

Agriculture Minister Akram Shehayyeb announced Sunday that the eight Lebanese truck drivers who were still stranded in Syria have crossed into Jordan and are now in the custody of Jordanian authorities, as efforts continued to unveil the fate of a ninth trucker.

The drivers “are doing well and will arrive in Beirut tomorrow aboard a Middle East Airlines plane,” said Shehayyeb, who was tasked by cabinet to follow up on the case.

The minister thanked “everyone who helped them arrive safe in brotherly Jordan,” hoping the missing driver will soon be located and evacuated.

He also extended gratitude to “the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and its premier, royal court chief and interior minister for their cooperation with the strenuous efforts that were exerted by PM Tammam Salam, Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq, Lebanese Ambassador to Jordan Nabil Masarwa and Lebanese charge d'affaires in Amman Ali al-Mawla.”

At least 30 Lebanese truck drivers were stranded on the Syrian-Jordanian border, in the free zone, after rebels seized the Syrian side, prompting Amman to close a frontier crossing.

The drivers entered the crossing on April 1, as a group of rebels, backed by al-Nusra Front, seized control of it after clashes with government forces.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said around 300 cars and trucks had been stuck at the crossing, and reported looting of the border passage by rebels and local residents.

A group of Lebanese drivers had arrived in Lebanon in recent days.

Y.R.