
The Lebanese army said on Saturday it had arrested a known Al Qaeda leader in the town of Deir Ammar, northeast of the city of Tripoli.
The army identified the detainee only as "TM" and said in a statement that the arrest was made on Friday.
"TM is one of the most well-known leaders of Al Qaeda and the founder of its cells in Lebanon," the statement added.
"He also played a key role in establishing the terrorist organization Fatah al-Islam," the statement said, referring to an al-Qaeda-inspired militant group that was active in Lebanon more than a decade ago.
The Lebanese military said attention to TM fell in late 2007 after a fierce battle between the military and Fatah al-Islam in a refugee camp in northern Lebanon.
"The focus on him returned after the rise of the Islamic State and the Syrian militant group Nusra Front," the Lebanese army added./VOA