Lebanon nabs Egyptian spying for Israel
According to Lebanese sources, the suspect, identified as Ibrahim S., has confessed to spying for Tel Aviv and that sophisticated espionage equipments, including a satellite device and an Israeli SIM card, were found in his apartment.
Ibrahim’s wife, a Lebanese national, was also arrested on suspicion of involvement in his espionage activities against Beirut.
Ibrahim, 55, has lived in Hasbaya, southeast Lebanon, for the past 20 years. He was apprehended on Saturday and is currently under interrogation.
Security sources said Ibrahim crossed into Israel during the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon and worked there for years.
In April 2009, Lebanon, which has technically been in a state of war with Israel, launched a nationwide crackdown on Israeli spy cells arresting nearly 100 people, including members of the country’s security forces and telecommunications personnel, on suspicion of espionage for Mossad.
A number of the suspects have admitted to their role in helping Israel identify targets inside Lebanon, mostly belonging to Hezbollah, which Tel Aviv heavily bombed during its 2006 war against the country.
The most high-profile arrest came in August after Fayez Karam, a former army general and Christian Party politician, was charged with spying for Israel.
Karam, who was in charge of the Lebanese army’s anti-terrorism and counter-espionage unit in the 1980s, has been accused of meeting Mossad agents outside Lebanon and giving them information in exchange for money and weapons.
If convicted, the spies will face life sentences with hard labor. Should they be found guilty of contributing to the loss of Lebanese lives, the agents will face the capital punishment.
HM/HGH/HJL