Report: Hezbollah Member Arrested by Assad Regime for Selling Weapons to ISIS

The son of a high ranking member of the terrorist group Hezbollah has been arrested by Bashar al-Assad regime forces for purchasing arms and ammunitions from the Syrian army and selling them to the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL), reported a Lebanese news outlet.

In mid-August, Syrian intelligence apprehended a group of Assad regime army recruits who were selling light to mid-level arms and ammunition to a Lebanese individual, who was also arrested, reported the Lebanese news site Janoubia in Arabic.

“The Syrian security service discovered that the detained Lebanese national—identified only as Ammar Y.Sh.—was a member of Hezbollah, a trusted source in the Bekaa [in Lebanon] told the outlet, which has an editorial line opposing the Shiite party,” noted the Beirut-based NOW News.

“Janoubia added that Ammar Y. Sh.—the eldest son of a high ranking Hezbollah military official in the Bekaa—was able to enter and exit Syria freely with the weapons due to his position in the party, which is fighting on behalf of the Bashar al-Assad regime,” NOW added.

The Assad regime’s investigation reportedly found that the weapons had been smuggled through Lebanese soil to ISIS jihadists, which maintain a presence along the Qalamoun region that lies along the Lebanese-Syrian border and borders areas controlled by Hezbollah.

Janoubia reported that “so far the Syrian security forces have refused to hand over the accused Hezbollah member to the Lebanese party on grounds that Syria has jurisdiction over him since his crime was perpetrated on Syrian territory,” according to NOW News.

“Hezbollah has been informed that a death sentence has been issued against him and the other members of the smuggling network, and that it will be implemented shortly,” added Janoubia.

Ammar Y. Sh. reportedly used his position as the eldest son of a high-ranking Hezbollah military official in the Bekaa Valley to enter and exit Syria freely with the weapons.

“Syrian regime forces, so far refused to hand over the accused Hezbollah member or pardon him from punishment, on grounds that Syria has jurisdiction over him, since his crime was perpetrated on Syrian territory, and so Syrian laws pass,” reported the state-run Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT), also citing the Janoubia article.

Iran’s proxy Hezbollah, based in Lebanon, is fighting against ISIS on behalf of the Assad regime.