The Syrian General Authority for Land and Sea Ports and Customs announced on Saturday, April 4, a temporary suspension of movement through the Jdeidet Yabous border crossing with Lebanon until any potential risks have passed.
Mazen Alloush, director of public relations at the authority, said the closure would remain in effect until the situation is confirmed stable, out of concern for travelers’ safety.
Alloush said the crossing is designated exclusively for civilian travel and is not used for any military purpose. He added that there are no armed groups or militias at the crossing, and that it is not allowed to be used for any activity outside civilian and legal frameworks.
Israeli Threat to Target Crossing
The announcement from the Syrian side came after an Israeli warning to people in the area of the Masnaa crossing on the Syrian-Lebanese border, as well as all travelers on the M30 road, to evacuate before the area is targeted.
Israeli army spokesperson Avichay Adraee said that Lebanon’s Hezbollah uses the crossing for military purposes and to smuggle weapons, according to his statement.
Adraee said the Israeli army would soon carry out airstrikes on the crossing, warning that anyone who remains in the area would be putting themselves at risk.
The crossing had previously seen a suspension of passenger movement in both directions on March 4, as announced at the time by Mazen Alloush.
That came after the Masnaa crossing received a warning from the Lebanese side calling for evacuation, due to the possibility of an Israeli strike on the area.
War and Displacement
The ongoing military conflict in Lebanon between Hezbollah and Israel, since March 2, has caused a large number of casualties and triggered displacement from several areas of Lebanon, including thousands of Syrians.
The United Nations said that more than 200,000 people crossed from Lebanon into Syria through the three official border crossings following the ongoing military escalation between Israel and Hezbollah.
Syrians make up the overwhelming majority of that figure, at around 180,000 people, including Syrian refugees who had previously fled Syria in search of safety in Lebanon and are now once again forced to flee. The figure also includes Syrians who had long considered returning home, according to a statement published by the UN refugee agency.
More than 28,000 Lebanese also crossed into Syria, most of them fleeing heavy Israeli bombardment, according to the agency’s statement published on March 31. It described them as arriving exhausted and traumatized, with very few belongings.
Crossing movements were concentrated mainly through the Masnaa, Jdeidet Yabous crossing and the al-Qaa, Jousieh crossing, both of which operate around the clock. The al-Arida crossing, on the Syrian side, was reopened on March 7, but it remains limited to pedestrians because one of its bridges was damaged.
Arrivals peaked in early March, particularly among families fleeing Beirut’s southern suburbs and southern Lebanon.
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