A Tripoli resident who operated several social media accounts promoting the activities of Daesh (ISIS) militants was arrested by the Lebanese Army Saturday.
After monitoring the suspect's activity across social media platforms like Twitter and YouTube, the Army traced his location to the Qibbeh neighborhood in Tripoli.
The suspect, who was identified by his nom du guerre “Abu al-Hour al-Shami,” is a Tripoli resident who is suspected of posting messages and videos promoting the activities of ISIS militants, who have killed thousands of people in Iraq and Syria.
Security sources said that al-Shami has links to media personnel in Syria and was in contact with ISIS affiliates in Raqqa. The suspect also has strong ties to two brothers from Tripoli who are currently fighting alongside the jihadi group.
It remains unclear whether he was tasked to operate the media network by ISIS or if he did so voluntarily.
The suspects operates a YouTube account that goes by the name “Markaz Aisha lil Intaj al I’lami,” which in Arabic translates to "The Aisha Center for Media Production." The account publishes propaganda for ISIS and footage of their operations.
In one video circulated on YouTube, footage allegedly shows Lebanese troops torturing a inmate at Roumieh Prison. The video ends with a caption that reads: “The Lebanese Army are traitors.”
The suspect also runs a Twitter account under the name “Abu al-Hour al-Shami.”
In one post from March 11, the suspect posted pictures of a 19-year-old from the northern city of Tripoli who was killed while fighting with ISIS in Syria.
“The martyrdom of my beloved brother Abu Huthaifa al-Tarabolsi,” read the caption posted above the photo.
In one tweet, the suspect called on ISIS to officially enter Lebanon.
The father of the suspect confessed to media content that could be found on al-Shami’s phone, saying that he was aware that his son was keeping recordings and footage of ISIS military operations.
[This story has been edited from the source material.]
