The Media Line: Is Lebanon Hiding Hundreds of Syrian Officers, Helping Them Evade Justice? 

Is Lebanon Hiding Hundreds of Syrian Officers, Helping Them Evade Justice? 

Repeated Lebanese denials of the presence of internationally wanted Syrians on its territory contradict media and judicial evidence 

By Rizik AlAbi / The Media Line  

[DAMASCUS] In a move last month that sparked widespread controversy in Beirut and Damascus, Syrian authorities handed over to their Lebanese counterparts a list naming approximately 300 officers and military personnel from the former Syrian regime, requesting their transfer to Damascus.  

The officers, who fled to Lebanon following the fall of the previous regime, were listed with precise information about their residences, movements, and phone numbers, placing them under close surveillance by both Lebanese and Syrian security agencies. This has raised questions about whether Beirut will respond to the Syrian request or leave the officers’ fate unresolved amid delicate political and security balances. 

The move comes as Lebanon faces an exceptionally sensitive political and legal test, combining domestic legal obligations with Syrian pressure and international interests in pursuing former Syrian regime figures. Experts say the issue has become one of the most complex cases, with close security and intelligence monitoring aimed at preventing any security or political fallout inside Lebanon, particularly because some of the officers hold legal residency, further complicating any decision on whether to hand them over. 

In this context, Nabil El Halabi, a Lebanese lawyer and CEO of the Middle East Forum for Policies and Future Studies in Istanbul, told The Media Line that the issue of Syrian officers in Lebanon cannot be separated from the three main problems that hinder the development of relations between Beirut and Damascus in the post-Assad era.  

El Halabi explained that the first issue is Lebanese authorities delaying the transfer of approximately 2,600 Syrian prisoners back to their country, including about 300 political detainees arrested for supporting the Syrian revolution or opposing Hezbollah’s involvement in the Syrian war. He noted that the Lebanese side insists on legal authorization and a judicial agreement to govern transfer operations—except in cases involving prisoners accused of fighting the Lebanese army—even though, over the past 14 years, Lebanese authorities have handed over Syrian opposition members to the former Assad regime despite objections from international human rights organizations.  

He added that the Lebanese military institution, including the military court and certain security agencies, was under Hezbollah’s influence during that period, giving a political and vindictive character to some of the rulings issued against Syrian opponents.  

The second issue, which El Halabi described as the most dangerous, is the flight of hundreds of Syrian commanders, officers, and military and security personnel to Lebanon following the fall of the previous regime. He confirmed that some of them are listed under US and European sanctions and are wanted by Interpol, and that they, alongside financiers from the remnants of the regime, have used Lebanese territory as a base from which to destabilize Syria, particularly on the Syrian coast and in the Homs governorate. 

El Halabi added that Lebanese authorities are aware of their presence, and some Lebanese security officers facilitated their entry and provided protection in exchange for money, while fighters took refuge in areas under Hezbollah’s influence.  

In this context, a Syrian security source who spoke to The Media Line on condition of anonymity for security reasons, referred to reports that Hezbollah built a large residential camp surrounded by a high concrete wall in the Hermel area to house former Syrian officers and personnel with their families.   

He indicated that repeated Lebanese denials of the presence of internationally wanted individuals on its territory contradict media and judicial evidence, including an American journalist’s interview with Bassam Al-Hassan, listed under US sanctions and involved in the kidnapping of American journalist Austin Tice, in his apartment in a Beirut suburb.   

The source also noted France’s recent request to hand over Brigadier General Jamil Hassan, former director of the Syrian Air Force Intelligence Directorate. Lebanese authorities denied knowing his location.  

The Syrian security insider added that the third issue is the Syrian authorities’ demand for the return of Syrian depositors’ funds held in Lebanese banks, noting that this financial conflict further complicates relations between the two countries.  

The issue of returning Syrian officers from Lebanon gained international attention on Nov. 3, 2025, when Lebanese authorities received an official judicial request from France to verify the presence of former Syrian regime officials on Lebanese territory, arrest them, and hand them over to French courts as part of investigations into war crimes and crimes against humanity. The cases include the deaths, while detained in Syria, of citizens holding French nationality. Informed sources confirmed that the investigations involved tracking the officials’ residences, movements, and communications, further highlighting the complex international nature of the case.  

The fate of former Syrian officers in Lebanon remains suspended between legal and political considerations, Syrian pressures, and international oversight, making this issue one of the most sensitive and strategic in Lebanese-Syrian relations today, and placing before Beirut critical choices that will determine the shape of its future relationship with Damascus.