[Jerusalem Post Front Page] Another member of an alleged spy network for Israel has been arrested in Lebanon, local media reported on Thursday. G. Alam, a general security department corporal, was arrested earlier this week in the South Lebanese town of Naqoura and his home, located in another province, was also raided. Authorities retrieved a computer from his home, according to al-Hayat newspaper.
On Saturday, his uncle, a retired Lebanese general named Adib Alam, was arrested at his office in Beirut, also on suspicion of spying for Israel. Adib's wife was also questioned. The uncle is accused of using his business, which managed foreign domestic workers, as a front for his espionage activities.
"We are facing a professional and well-trained network, even while it is being discovered, and as a result, the investigation will take a long time," a security source told a-Safir newspaper. The spy ring may not be limited to only espionage activities but might also be engaged in carrying out missions, he said.
Hizbullah's Deputy Secretary-General Naim Qassem has called the arrest of Adib Alam a major achievement for security forces. "Preliminary information indicates he had been working as a spy for Israel for over 25 years and retired from his position in national security eight years ago," Qassem told AFP.
Since the Second Lebanon War in 2006, Lebanese officials say Israel continues to recruit and operate spies. Several arrests were announced in November and February. Last year two people were arrested for allegedly trying to pass information to the Mossad about a range of Lebanese activities, both via pictures of military and civilian installations and through spoken contact.