Lebanon arrests man accused of sending $400,000 to IS

Lebanese security forces arrested a man accused of stealing $400,000 from his father's safe and transferring the money to the Islamic State group in Syria, a Lebanese judicial official told AFP on Tuesday.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said an investigation showed the man was part of a cell active between Lebanon and Syria. The official said three alleged members of the cell are in prison in the Lebanese city of Tripoli and handled coordination with IS in Syria.

Two other suspected cell members are believed to have crossed Lebanon's border into Syria after the case was uncovered, the official said.

The official said the group was responsible for funding IS with the aim of carrying out attacks in Syria or Lebanon.

Lebanese authorities previously said they detained a Syrian IS commander in late June, accusing him of leading the group in central and southern Syria. Last year, Lebanon's military said it arrested the suspected leader of IS in Lebanon and accused him of involvement in planning several operations.

IS lost its territorial control in Syria in 2019, but remnants remain in the country, particularly in desert areas. The group occasionally claims attacks mainly targeting Syrian security forces.