This is the second Lebanese soldier to defect to al-Nusra Front in less than 24 hours. (File photo: AFP)
Second Lebanese soldier defects to al-Nusra Front in 24 hours
Abdullah Shehada is the second Lebanese soldier to defect to Al-Qaeda’s offshoot in Syria in less than 24 hours
In less than 24 hours, a second Lebanese soldier has defected to the Nusra Front, Al-Qaeda’s offshoot in Syria, the Lebanese Press Agency reported on Saturday.
Abdullah Shehada, from the town of Akkar in northern Lebanon, announced his defection on Friday night.
“What Abdullah Shehada did was an individual act,” the president of Akkar municipality said, adding that Shehada comes from a family “fond of the military institution.”
He said he was surprised by Shehada’s defection, calling it “unnatural.”
A video released by the Turkish Anadolu news agency on Friday showed Lebanese soldier Mohammad Antar announcing his defection to the Nusra Front.
