Two young men from Bsharri, Haytham Jemil Hindi Tok and Malek Jaafar Tok, were killed on Saturday by militiamen in the high mountains of Qornet el-Sawda, an area bordering the districts of Bsharri and Denniye. A third young man from Bsharri, Oussama Mansour Succar, was injured and transported to Bsharri Hospital. After these murders, high tension erupted in various sectors of Bsharri. By the end of the day, four army helicopters were flying over Qornet el-Sawda to locate and intercept the snipers responsible for shooting the young men. Following the attacks, Bsharri’s representative MP Sethrida Geagea contacted Army Commander General Joseph Aoun to ask him to establish a military at a checkpoint between Bsharri and the Qornet el-Sawda region at Bkaa Sefrine to prevent any escalation.
Latent tension between the regions of Bsharri and Denniye have been arising for several years due to a chronic conflict over land ownership and water sharing in Bkaa Sefrine, an area located between the two regions.
Due to the risks of further escalation following the death of the two young men, the caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati contacted Mrs. Geagea in the early evening, strongly condemning this security development and calling on the residents of Bsharri to maintain calm in the region.
On his part, General Ashraf Rifi, a parliamentarian from Tripoli, contacted the party chief of the Lebanese Forces, Samir Geagea, condemning the attack and warning against a “premeditated” plan to sow discord between Bsharri and Denniye.
In a statement to the press, Mrs. Geagea stated that Haytham Tok was killed by “armed elements whose identities have not been determined and who were in the region.” Mrs. Geagea made this statement before the discovery of Malek Tok’s body later that day. The representative of Bsharri requested General Joseph Aoun to dispatch a military unit to the area to initiate an urgent investigation and catch the perpetrators to bring them to justice.
Furthermore, Mrs. Geagea urged the residents of Bsharri to exercise restraint while awaiting the results of the investigations.
MP Melhem Tok called on the residents of Bsharri to maintain calm in the region while strongly condemning “armed groups that have been attempting, for several years, to undermine our land and drag us into an unwanted internal strife. This heinous crime was not committed (on Saturday) by unknown armed elements but by snipers attempting to seize our land. While we call for calm, it does not mean that we will give up on obtaining our rights.”
Finally, MP Faisal Karameh denounced “the painful incident that occurred in Qornet el-Sawda.” He extended his condolences to “all the residents of Bsharri” and urged the security services to uncover “the truth” about this matter. Mr. Karame also warned against any attempt to provoke sectarian or communal discord in the country.
