Beirut: In Deir Ammar town, northeast of Tripoli, the Lebanese army announced on Saturday that a prominent Al Qaeda figure had been taken into custody. It stated in a statement that the man was only identified as "T.M." and that he was taken into custody on Friday.
It continued, "T.M. is one of Al Qaeda's most well-known leaders and the initiator of its cells in Lebanon."
The statement continued, "He has also played a key role in establishing the terrorist Fatah Al-Islam organisation," referring to a militant organisation with Al Qaeda roots that was active in Lebanon over ten years ago.
Following a bloody conflict between the military and Fatah Al-Islam at a refugee camp in northern Lebanon, the Lebanese army claimed that T.M. withdrew from the public eye in late 2007.
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The rise of Daesh and the Nusra Front, a militant group in Syria, brought him back into the public eye, the army continued.
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