For the second straight day, the Russian Air Force has carried out multiple airstrikes over the Lebanese-Syrian border, targeting the Islamist rebel groups of Harakat Ahrar Al-Sham, the Syrian Al-Qaeda group “Jabhat Al-Nusra”, and the Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham (ISIS) inside the Beqa’a Governorate of eastern Lebanon.
Among the many targets for the Russian Air Force, they primarily concentrated on Jaroud ‘Arsal, Ras Ba’albak, and the Nahle Municipality; these aforementioned sites are currently flooded with Islamist rebels from Jabhat Al-Nusra, ISIS, and Harakat Ahrar Al-Sham.
The Russian Air Force has notified the Lebanese Armed Forces every time they crossed the Beqa’a-Damascus border in order to avoid any hostile reaction from the Lebanese air defense.
The Syrian and Lebanese military command have an agreement in place that allows for either Air Force to use their airspace; this military agreement was facilitated by Hezbollah officials before the genesis of the Syriaj Conflict.
The Russian military command enjoys warm relations with the Lebanese Armed Forces; this relationship will likely strengthen as the Russians look to invest more in the Lebanese military.
Currently, Hezbollah is forestalling ISIS’ progress in Ras Ba’albak after the aforementioned terrorist group attempted to enter Syria via the Al-Qusayr border-crossing.
