Special to WorldTribune.com

NICOSIA — Syrian rebels have begun attacking Hizbullah bases in
Lebanon.

Sunni rebels, including those aligned with Al Qaida, have crossed the
border from Syria to attack Hizbullah bases in Lebanon. On June 2, hundreds
of Syrian rebels, supported by rocket attacks, clashed with Hizbullah troops
in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley.

The fighting began on June 1 after Sunni rebel leaders warned that
Hizbullah would be a key target in the war against the regime of President
Bashar Assad. Opposition sources said an estimated 2,000 rebels poured into the Lebanese-Syrian border area for the offensive.

The rebels opened with rocket fire on Hizbullah bases, and at least 18
rounds were reported. The sources said Hizbullah troops responded with
massive force and trapped a rebel unit in Lebanon’s Baalbek region.

The sources identified the rebels as being led by the Al Qaida-aligned
Al Nusra Front for the Defense of the Levant. Reports from Lebanon said Al
Nusra as well as the Free Syrian Army sustained heavy casualties in the
Hizbullah counter-attack.

Al Nusra has sought to ease the Assad siege on the Syrian border city of
Qusayr, deemed a rebel hub. The source said Al Nusra has targeted regime
facilities in Damascus, including bombing a police station in a Damascus
suburb on June 2 in which nine Syrian officers were killed.

“More than 1,000 Free Syrian Army fighters from all over Syria are now
joining the resistance inside Qusayr to defend against the foreign terrorist
invaders, who are infiltrating our country from Lebanon and other places,”
Syrian National Coalition president George Sabra said.

Over the last few weeks, Hizbullah has expanded anti-rebel operations
throughout Syria. The sources said the latest front was in the northern city
of Aleppo, where Hizbullah was believed to have deployed between 2,000 and
4,000 troops.

  Al Nusra Front, Bashar Assad, Bekaa Valley, clash with Hizbullah in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, Free Syrian Army, Qusayr, Syrian rebels cross border