SHADRA, Lebanon: The golden rays of light seep through the Kina trees lining the highway between Abdeh and the border town of Abboudieh in the north Lebanon province of Akkar. Vast potato and peanut fields are hidden behind the tall trees. On the western side of the highway, toward the sea, lies the abandoned Rene Mouawad airport in Qleiaat. Mohammad Laalaa from the village of Tal Maayan is busy arranging his harvest of potatoes into cardboard boxes before loading them into trucks. He is clearly disinterested in the news of the fighting in neighboring Syria or of the possibility of ISIS taking over the close-by city of Homs, located a few dozen kilometers away from Lebanon’s border with Syria. In fact, what worries Laalaa the most these days is his inability to export his harvest. Since the outbreak of the Syrian war it has become increasingly difficult to transport Lebanese-grown produce to its main markets in the Gulf. Since Jordan closed its border with Syria after the Nassib crossing fell into the hands of rebel groups, fruits and vegetables from Lebanon cannot reach consumers in Jordan or the Gulf. Laalaa’s seasonal profits have shrunk from $10,000 to $2,000, he said.“The plight of farmers is a great one,” he said. “All of our produce is going to waste.”
Laalaa is one of the 500,000 residents of Lebanon’s poorest province. Stretched over 788 square-kilometers, Akkar comprises agricultural fields, tourist attractions, natural reserves and an airport. The district, however, has suffered from long years of neglect, which has increased poverty rates and encouraged mass emigration.Akkar is known for its religious and confessional diversity; while 50 percent of the population is Sunni, the province is also inhabited by Christians and Alawites. The northern district’s villages themselves comprise a mixture of sects which, according to residents, has immunized Akkar against sectarian tensions that became rampant during Lebanon’s 1975-90 Civil War.But the takeover by ISIS of the historical city of Palmyra and reports that the terrorist group has plans to launch an offensive on Homs has stirred fears among Akkar’s Christians and Alawites.
In the villages that line the northern border with Syria, Homs’ Crac des Chevaliers – which was overrun briefly by ISIS in 2013 and later recovered by the Syrian Army – is clearly visible.Christian fears were further exacerbated following the murder in May of Asaad al-Warraq, a prominent businessman from the Christian village of Minyara. Reports emerged that terrorist cells killed Warraq for his role in supplying the Lebanese Army with key information during the 2007 clashes in the Palestinian refugee camp of Nahr al-Bared, blamed on the Al-Qaeda-inspired Fatah al-Islam group. Other reports spoke about Warraq’s role in uncovering terrorist plots to recruit among north Lebanon’s Christian youths.
The slain businessman’s relative Elie Tony al-Warraq was arrested in January in connection with a twin suicide blast that targeted a cafe in Tripoli’s majority Alawite neighborhood of Jabal Mohsen. The district’s 650,000 Syrian refugees are another cause of worry to Christians, who voiced fears that some of them might join extremist groups in the event of an ISIS attack. A senior security source in north Lebanon does not entirely dismiss an ISIS threat, but explained that the option of ISIS invading the Akkar region was not a viable one.
“The activation of sleeper cells in Lebanon is a more plausible option,” the source said. These cells will be activated once terrorist groups sense that Lebanese security forces are in a state of disarray, “which is highly unlikely to happen,” according to the source.
The source described reports about ISIS moving to invade the Syrian province of Homs and surrounding areas as “mere speculation.”But the source said Lebanese authorities were well aware that ISIS was looking for an outlet to the sea, and Akkar’s strategic location in addition to the existence of the Renee Mouawad airport, which is only 3 kilometers away from the Syrian border, turns it into much-coveted territory.
In the majority-Alawite village of Haysa, residents speak about security forces in the Wadi Khaled and Tlayl areas recently thwarting arms deliveries ISIS-linked groups. According to Haysa residents interviewed by The Daily Star who wished to remain anonymous, sleeper cells in Akkar will be activated “in due time” in light of the wide “political” support ISIS enjoys in some of the area’s villages. The residents recalled when Fnaydeq Mayor Raed Khaled Taleb distributed sweets when his son died fighting alongside ISIS in Syria.
The residents also do not deny that residents of Akkar’s Alawite villages are arming themselves. “We are the sons of this land and we will defend it with our Sunni and Christian brothers,” one resident said. “We reject ISIS’ rule and we will fight and we won’t flee to Syria or to any other Lebanese area.” The porous nature of the Lebanese-Syrian border, which has never been demarcated, turned it into a suitable environment for smuggling activities. Before the Syrian war, gasoline and home appliances used to be trafficked, but after 2011 the same routes were used to smuggle weapons and fighters. In order to control the flow of weapons and militants along the border, the Lebanese Army has set up a number of posts in border villages like Shadra. Georges Dib is unfazed, wagering on national unity and the Lebanese Army to ward off dangers.
“There is nothing to worry about,” the lawyer said. “Our ties with Wadi Khaled, Mashta Hasan and Mashta Hammoud are thousands of years old and we rely on those ties, on national unity and on the Lebanese Army to protect us. These are our guarantees.” The 60-year-old Dib, who now lives in Jounieh but visits Shadra on the weekends, noted that he did not leave his village for sectarian reasons but for purely economic ones. He said terrorist groups are not only a threat to Christians and Alawites, but are a threat to Sunnis as well. “The main objective of ISIS and its ilk is to target models of coexistence like the one we have in Akkar.”
But Father Nectarios Makhoul, the head of the Roman Orthodox parish of Aydamoun-Tlayl, does not share Dib’s optimism. He said Akkar’s Christians and Alawites have “fateful concerns” regarding events in Syria. “Let’s be frank – both Christians and Alawites are threatened and the dangers should not be downplayed.”He spoke about two “difficult” options if Akkar comes under attack: “We either stay in our land and fight or we leave here and move to safer areas.” Makhoul said since the outbreak of the fighting in Syria his mind has been occupied with one matter: safeguarding his parish. “It’s a big question you know,” Makhoul added. “I know we need to abide by Jesus’ words and stay in our land and die for it. This is a genuine rendition of our faith.”
