Hezbollah is recruiting young Christian, Druze and Sunni men in east Lebanon to fight ISIS, local newspaper An-Nahar reported Wednesday.
The report said Hezbollah members in the northern and western parts of the Bekaa Valley were offering the recruits weapons and training “to counter the threat of ISIS and its affiliates.”
As the recruitment was reportedly ongoing in the Bekaa, the report said similar training of Christians, Druze and Alawites was taking place in Syria, “but not under the Resistance Brigades.”
Hezbollah formed the Resistance Brigades in 2009, recruiting Sunni allies into the group, which later sparked controversy when clashes erupted between the militia and residents in south Lebanon.
Last year, Hezbollah reduced the number of the Resistance Brigades fighters from around 500 to between 200 and 250 and purged its ranks of those who have been exacerbating tensions with the local community, a source close to the party had told The Daily Star.
An-Nahar said “hefty” pay had been offered to those recruits who “directly” joined Iran’s Revolutionary Guards.
Those coming from Syria into Lebanon spoke of monthly salaries between $1,500 and $2,500, according to the report.
Lebanon is engaged in a battle against jihadists from ISIS and the Nusra Front along its northern and northeastern border with Syria after the extremists briefly took over the Bekaa Valley town of Arsal early in August, capturing more than 30 Lebanese servicemen.
The militants have so far released seven hostages and killed three.
