Militants ambush Lebanese army patrol near border with Syria, kill 6 soldiers

BEIRUT – Militants ambushed a Lebanese army patrol near the border with Syria on Tuesday, killing six soldiers and wounding one, the military said.

The attack occurred in a remote region of Ras Baalbek in eastern Lebanon, and the military responded by rushing in reinforcements, the Lebanese army said in a statement.

It was not immediately clear who was behind the attack, but Lebanese troops have been battling Syria-based Islamic militants, including the extremist Islamic State group and the Nusra Front, in areas near the border.

Local media said dozens of militants took part in the attack.

In August, the militant groups seized some 20 Lebanese soldiers and police officers during a brief cross-border raid on the Lebanese border town of Arsal. The extremists have already killed three of the captives, beheading two of them.

The plight of the remaining captive soldiers and policemen and their families has gripped Lebanon in the past weeks. Relatives of the hostages are staging an ongoing sit-in and blocking roads in Beirut to pressure the government to negotiate with the militants.