Army Commander General Jean Qahwaji on Sunday announced that the attacks on the army in Ersal were premeditated, noting that the clashes did not erupt because of the arrest of top militant Imad Ahmed Jomaa

Army Commander General Jean Qahwaji on Sunday announced that the attacks on the army in Ersal were premeditated, noting that the clashes with armed groups did not erupt because of the arrest of top militant Imad Ahmed Jomaa.

“Gunmen launched an attack against the army after troops arrested Jomaa and the assault was prepared. The army then waged an offensive to break the siege that was imposed on its posts,” Qahwaji said in a rare press conference on the second day of the army's military operation in the Bekaa town of Ersal.

The army chief said the detainee Jomaa has confessed that he was “inspecting the area with the aim of carrying out an attack on the army.”

“The fight against terrorists is being carried out by the army, which has lost 10 martyrs. Twenty-five soldiers were wounded, including 4 officers, and 13 troops are missing and they may have fallen captive in the hands of the terrorist groups,” he revealed.

He pointed out that the armed men are “alien to Lebanon,” noting that they hail from various countries. He also announced the army's readiness to confront “all takfiri movements that might come to Ersal.”

Qahwaji reassured that the army will continue to “exert all military measures to preserve the country's unity and the safety of civilians.”