Israel sends back Lebanese man who crossed northern border

A Lebanese national who was detained by the IDF after managing to cross the border into Israel was returned to Lebanon on Friday without incident.

The Israel Defense Forces said the man was spotted upon crossing into Israeli territory near the northern town of Metulla on Thursday. He was subsequently arrested and transferred to security forces for further interrogation.

In a separate statement, the security coordinator for Metulla said he was the one who spotted the suspect and apprehended him until IDF troops arrived at the scene.

The coordinator said the suspect was not planning to carry out an attack but rather was seeking asylum from the Lebanese terror group Hezbollah.

The IDF said the man was returned to Lebanon via the Rosh Hanikra border crossing.

While there have been cases of members of the Hezbollah terror group attempting to infiltrate Israel from southern Lebanon, over the years the border has more commonly seen criminal smuggling operations and attempts by migrants to illegally cross into Israel to find work due to the deteriorating economic conditions in Lebanon.

החדירה במטולה: מחדדים שחצה מלבנון באזור *מרחב* היישוב (ולא הישוב עצמו). כאמור הרבש״ץ וחיילי צה״ל עצרו אותו והעבירו אותו לחקירה. כאמור ככה״נ לא מדובר באירוע פח״ע. חתימה טובה. pic.twitter.com/iEomlwK5FN

— יואב איתיאל מדווח כי (@yoavetiel) September 16, 2021