BEIRUT, Lebanon, June 20 (UPI) -- Twelve men were detained by Lebanese security forces Friday in Beirut, Lebanon. They were said to be members of the Sunni insurgent group ISIS and were suspected of planning to assassinate a Shiite political leader.
The men were captured in a West Beirut hotel in the city's business district and are suspected of plotting to kill Nabih Berri, a parliament member and leader in Lebanon's Amal movement, a Shiite political party allied with Hezbollah. They are also suspected of planning the death of Maj. Gen. Abbas Ibrahim, commander of the country's general security agency.
Lebanese media reported other suspects are being sought, and that an Amal conference scheduled for Friday in Beirut was abruptly cancelled because of security concerns.
ISIS, which has made strides in the past three weeks in overtaking much of Iraq, has threatened to include Lebanon in their campaign to create an Islamic state. The presence of the suspects in Beirut raised concerns in a city that has seen a reduction in tension and violence since Hezbollah and the Syrian Army tightened their control of the border between Syria and Lebanon.
