copenlu/druid huggingface dataset:
Claim: Qaa is a territory of Syria (Qaa, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2021-10-21): "You are now technically in Syria," a Lebanese military officer told me as the convoy pulled over to the side of the road. I had joined their regiment on an anti-smuggling patrol somewhere near Ras-Baalbek in the Beqaa Valley. When the French demarcated the border between Lebanon and Syria in 1923, they drew arbitrary lines with little connection to tribal or ethnic realities on the ground. The result is areas along the border under de facto Syrian control but that are de jure Lebanese territory, and vice versa. The only tangible sign of a border is the river which makes a rough delineation, but it doesn’t follow the official border for long. Half of the cars here don’t even have license plates. [...] Entering the village of Qaa, the last population center solidly in Lebanese territory before the ambiguous border area, we drove through an arch marked by the flags of the twin Shia militias Hezbollah and Amal—yellow and green, respectively. Fixed to every streetlight were a large Amal flag and a solar panel on top. The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) has been funding solar energy projects in Lebanon since 2006, including a solar farm for farmers in this town. This panel was probably a part of that project. Sustainable energy solutions might work in isolated scenarios, and the farmers are certainly grateful, but the UN’s solution isn’t scalable when Lebanese people are making the equivalent of less than $100 a month. Desperate people aren’t concerned about their carbon footprint.
Claim: Qaa is a territory of Syria (Qaa, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2024-07-09): Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper said that the Lebanese army, with the support of the al-Beqaa Intelligence Directorate, arrested (90) Syrian refugees last night, Sunday, July 7, 2024, who attempted to enter Lebanese territory through smuggling. The newspaper added that Lebanese General Security returned 60 of them to Syria through the Al-Qaa border crossing, in the far north-east of Lebanon. The newspaper pointed out that a number of Syrian families were arrested through mobile ambushes set up on smuggling routes inside Lebanon in the northern Beqaa in the towns of Labwa, Ras Ba’albak and Harbta.
Claim: Qaa is a territory of Syria (Qaa, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2017-11-16): Qusayr’s importance lays in the fact that it served as a logistical conduit for the anti-Assad revolt facilitating the movement of weapons and militants between Lebanon and Homs. Lebanon’s northeast Bekaa Valley is home to a Sunni population, most of which sympathizes with the Syrian opposition. Syrian rebels and Lebanese volunteers infiltrated Syria from Lebanon via the flat arable Masharei al-Qaa district and the adjacent arid mountains to the east.[6] Furthermore, the highway linking Damascus to the Mediterranean coastal port town of Tartus runs between Homs and Qusayr. Rebel control of Qusayr and parts of Homs threatened regime traffic. [...] [6] Personal interviews, Syrian rebel fighters, Jdeideh, Arsal, Masharei al-Qaa, Lebanon, May 2012-May 2013. [...] [11] Personal interviews, rebels belonging to the Jusiyah Martyrs Brigade (a unit in the Farouq Battalions), Masharei al-Qaa, Lebanon, October 8-9, 2012. See also Nicholas Blanford, "Accusations Mount of Hezbollah Fighting in Syria," Christian Science Monitor, October 15, 2012.
Claim: Qaa is a territory of Syria (Qaa, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2017-08-20): Lebanon’s army began its operation in the Ras Baalbek and Qaa region early on Saturday, and has already recaptured two-thirds of the territory in the area, the military said. [...] The army says around 600 ISIL fighters were deployed in the Jurud Ras Baalbek and Jurud al-Qaa areas and controlled around 120sq km of territory before the latest advances.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2024-10-08): Israel has invaded southern Lebanon in a dramatic escalation of its conflict with Hezbollah. [...] Lebanon is a small country with a population of about 5.5 million people, which borders Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. It is about 170km (105 miles) away from Cyprus. [...] These areas, close to the international airport, also have a strong Hezbollah presence and a series of Israeli strikes on buildings there killed Hezbollah's leader Hassan Nasrallah on 27 September.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2024-10-04): Today's top news: Lebanon, Occupied Palestinian Territory
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2023-07-13): After Israel invaded Lebanon during the latter’s civil war (first invading in 1978 and then again in 1982), it continued to occupy territory in southern Lebanon until 2000, when it announced a withdrawal. While the withdrawal was certified by the United Nations, Lebanon disputed it, arguing that the Shebaa Farms was part of its territory, and not part of the Syrian Golan Heights, which Israel continues to occupy. [...] The Shebaa Farms and the Kfar Chouba Hills should not be confused with the villages of Shebaa and Kfar Chouba, which are not disputed territories and lie within Lebanon. But, in rural Lebanon, villages are often surrounded by unpopulated hills or farmland that belongs to them – hence the disputed ownership of the Shebaa Farms and the Kfar Chouba Hills.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2024-10-09): The sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries must be respected.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2019-09-06): In the Lebanese mountains, the site of Qasr Moussa - or Moussa Castle - tells the story of a common man who pursued the dream of building his own castle. [...] Alex Karroum, an Australian of Lebanese origin, is amongst the castle’s visitors. He brought his son and nephew on a day trip to Qasr Moussa to teach them about its ancestors.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2024-10-09): Israeli raids target Al-Saffir area in the southern suburb of Beirut [...] More than 13 Israeli raids on the area between Labbouneh and Naqoura in one minute [...] The Israeli media is talking about the target of the recent raid on the Beirut suburb being one of Hezbollah commander Naim Qassem
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2018-01-27): I have been to the Lebanese village of al-Qasr on the border with Syria at the invitation of members of the Ja’afar clan. The atmosphere in the area is generally quiet and daily life mostly proceeds as normal. Some tents housing Syrian refugees can be found, while Syrians and Lebanese traverse both sides of the border on a daily basis. Though Syrians coming to Lebanon now officially require a visa, some leeway is granted in this area: for instance, some Syrians come to al-Qasr to sell bread at lower prices than purchased from Lebanese vendors. Some residents of al-Qasr might go to Syria for the day to buy food products for the similar reason of lower prices. [...] In al-Qasr though, a key matter of concern in the area stems from problems between the Lebanese state and the Ja’afar family. These problems have arisen on account of the killing of a young man called Hadi Ja’afar at a checkpoint being run by members of the Lebanese army intelligence in September 2016. The exact reason for the killing is not clear, but the incident prompted Hadi’s father al-Hajj Muhammad Ja’afar, a prominent member of the Ja’afar clan and wealthy businessman from al-Qasr, to take revenge on the perpetrator by organizing his killing with his own personal hit squad in the Sayyida Zainab area of Damascus. Owing to the problems that have arisen with the Lebanese state through this cycle of killing and revenge, members of the Ja’afar family, armed with rifles, now conduct night patrols in case of any attack by enemies from the Lebanese army.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2024-10-09): The territories of what would become the states of Israel and Lebanon were once part of the Ottoman Empire which lasted from 1299 until its defeat in World War I and subsequent dissolution in 1922. As a result of the Sinai and Palestine Campaign in 1917, the British occupied Palestine and parts of what would become Syria. French troops took Damascus in 1918. The League of Nations officially gave the French the Mandate of Syria and the British the Mandate of Palestine after the 1920 San Remo conference, in accordance with the 1916 Sykes–Picot Agreement. [...] On 19 August 2010, the Lebanese military reported that 12 aircraft belonging to the IDF entered into Lebanese territory, which they claim is a violation of Resolution 1701. In the three incidents, the IDF planes made circle maneuvers, fired no shots and left Lebanese airspace soon after.[154] [...] At sea, Israeli gunboats have shot into Lebanese territorial waters, and there have been Lebanese claims that Israel is breaching the law of the sea and might lay claim on Lebanese natural resources through the Tamar gas field.[165][166][167][168]
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2024-10-01): UNIFIL said in a statement that "any crossing into Lebanon is in violation of Lebanese sovereignty and territorial integrity," urging "all actors to step back from such escalatory acts which will only lead to more violence and more bloodshed," it added." [...] The United Arab Emirates expressed "deep concern" over the recent escalations, fearing its "impact on regional stability," the state-run Emirates News Agency (WAM) reported, adding that the Gulf state "reaffirmed its unwavering position towards the unity of Lebanon, national sovereignty, and territorial integrity." The UAE also directed an urgent $100 million relief package to the people of Lebanon. Jordan expressed "its rejection of the Israeli aggression" against Lebanon. Saudi Arabia said it "stresses the need to preserve Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity," while Qatar expressed solidarity with Lebanon as well as "readiness to provide support to the people to confront the consequences of the Israeli aggression."
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2022-02-04): Qasr lacks a sewage network. There are efforts to establish one connected to the treatment plant planned for the city of Hermel in the land between the two areas. Muhammad Jaafar, a Qasr-Sahlat al-Moi resident, says that Qasr belongs to the Lebanese state "in identity only" as "deprivation envelops everything". The "medical sector" in the town, which is located 12 kilometers away from Hermel and 160 kilometers away from Beirut, consists only of "a modest Ministry of Social Affairs clinic that you could call pro forma" and another clinic belonging to Hezbollah’s Islamic Health Organization. Anyone who needs a small wound stitched must head to Hermel, says Jaafar: "There is no clinic for an on-call doctor in Qasr." [...] Recently, Lebanese were reintroduced to Qasr via the talk about smuggling to Syria, as though it were a new phenomenon. In reality, smuggling has been one of the most important sources of income in the area since the two countries separated. Qasr is one of the areas along the border line extending from Dabousieh and Arida in North Lebanon to Deir el-Aachayer in western Beqaa, passing through Hawsh al-Sayyid Ali, Mushrifah, Aarsal, Ham, Maarboun, Masnaa, and other areas. In these areas, border commerce – as their people prefer to call smuggling – has been active ever since the Sykes–-Picot Agreement drew the current border between the two countries.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2021-02-24): The narrow and discontinuous coastal plain along the Mediterranean Sea features both sandy bays and rocky beaches. [...] Lebanon (officially, Lebanese Republic) is divided into 8 governorates (mohafazat sing. mohafazah). In alphabetical order, these governorates are: Aakkar, Baalbek-Hermel, Beyrouth (Beirut), Beqaa (Bekaa), Mont-Liban (Mount Lebanon), Nabatiye, Liban-Nord (North Lebanon) and Liban-Sud (South Lebanon). Except the governorates of Beirut and Akkar, the rest 6 governorates are subdivided into districts (Aqdya sing. qadaa) and further smaller subdivisions. [...] Lebanon is a small Middle East nation situated on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea in Western Asia. It is located in Northern and Eastern hemispheres of the Earth. Lebanon borders has land borders with two countries. It is bounded in the northern and eastern parts by Syria; in the southern part by Israel; in the western part by the Mediterranean Sea. The country shares its maritime borders with Cyprus.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2019-07-11): Mount Hermon is mentioned (15 times) in the Bible as Hermon (by the Canaanites worshipers of Baal, in the Books of Kings), Sirion (by the Sidonians-Phoeniciens) or Senir (by the Amorites). The Seleucids occupied the area after 200 B.C. Shortly after which the Ituraeans developed a principality in the area until the fall of Chalcis, when the territory passed to the Herodian kings Agrippa I and Agrippa II. After the end of the first century A.C. the territory became jointly controlled by the cities of Damascus, Sidon and Paneas. It is thought that the area was inhabited continuously until the third century A.C. The Mount Hermon was also revered by the Romans. The highest temple of the ancient world sits on the summit of the mount and is known today as Qasr Antar. On its slopes are temples with Greek inscriptions dating from about 200 A.C. More than 30 shrines and temples have been found in this geographical area giving it its historical relevance. Beside the Christian and Islamic communities, it is also considered a sacred place for the Druze that occupies the most villages that surrounds the mountain.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2014-04-12): BEIRUT — The commandos infiltrated Syrian rebel-held territory near the Lebanese border, watching rebel fighters come and go from a two-story villa before slipping inside to plant a powerful bomb. [...] In Syria, the turning point in Hezbollah’s strategy came after the group helped secure the Syrian border town of Qusair last June, said the Lebanese officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss Hezbollah military tactics. After that battle, they say rebels ambushed and killed four elite Hezbollah fighters. Now, Hezbollah sends small groups of fighters to observe areas before entering, the officials say. One official said Hezbollah also has linked Syrian territories where it is present to its bases in Lebanon via a secure, hard-wired telecommunication network it has been using back home for years.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2017-06-06): I have been to the Lebanese village of al-Qasr on the border with Syria at the invitation of members of the Ja’afar clan. The atmosphere in the area is generally quiet and daily life mostly proceeds as normal. Some tents housing Syrian refugees can be found, while Syrians and Lebanese traverse both sides of the border on a daily basis. Though Syrians coming to Lebanon now officially require a visa, some leeway is granted in this area: for instance, some Syrians come to al-Qasr to sell bread at lower prices than purchased from Lebanese vendors. Some residents of al-Qasr might go to Syria for the day to buy food products for the similar reason of lower prices.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2024-08-03): Earlier reports said the strike attributed to Israel targeted the Lebanese town of Qasr, which is close to the Syrian border.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2019-10-17): Since its establishment, Hezbollah has evolved from a non-state actor pursuing territorial liberation to more of a hybrid political entity intimately implicated in the day-to-day governance of Lebanon. Since 2008, it has partnered with successive governments. It has maintained a vast security apparatus encompassing, among other things, telecommunications, a standing militia and missile caches. Territorially, Hezbollah controls access to various parts of the republic, including the southern suburbs of Beirut and the governorates of Baalbek-Hermel, Nabatiyah and al-Janoub. This power is not unchallenged, however. Other collectives at the village and regional levels, alongside political parties, are engaged in arms stockpiling and basic training. [...] Conflict management in Lebanon is complicated. On the one hand, the longevity of the post-civil war political system, and its proponents’ success in stalling the reform agenda that ended the civil war (the Taif Accord), are evidence of a kind of cleavage management. On the other, the potential for small-scale disagreements or conflicts to escalate quickly out of control indicates political leaders’ consistent inability to resolve conflicts at the source. The political order can only exist because of long-running divisions in Lebanese society. The Tayyouneh clashes in 2021 are an example of both. Away from formal party politics, however, the Lebanese state has not demonstrated effective cleavage management. In 2020, for example, it took recourse to tribal customs to diffuse the skirmishes and tensions between the Jaafar and Jamal clans in Qasr.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2024-01-01): "Ali Hasan Qataya was killed and four people were wounded, one critically, when shells fired from Syria hit the center of the Hermel town of al-Qasr," said Lebanon's National News Agency. [...] On Saturday, rockets fired from Syria landed in al-Qasr and Sahlat al-Mayy in al-Hermel, OTV reported, as LBCI said four shells hit al-Qasr. [...] The Lebanese army issued a statement on the cross-border violence. "This afternoon, the border town of al-Qasr in the Hermel border region came under artillery shell fire from Syrian territory, killing one citizen, injuring three others and damaging several homes," said the army's statement.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2018-07-22): It is a different story however when it comes to the neighboring border town of Al Qasr. Due to the interlaced geography of the area, Al Qasr happens to be situated on both Lebanese and Syria territories, and that is the root of the ongoing friction between the residents of this town and the 11th division of the Syrian Arab army. [...] The local residents of Al Qasr are becoming more vocal in their opposition to the new measures and are threatening to take things further. [...] Says 42 year old Mahdi Jaafar (a pseudonym), a lifelong inhabitant of Al Qasr and a Hezbollah supporter and fighter. "We have spilled our blood and given the lives of our children to fight terrorism. Our martyrs are hundreds of times more than what the Russians have lost, and if they think they can besiege us in this manner, they are mistaken."
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2013-12-26): AL-QASR, Lebanon — That half of his farm lies in Syria and half in Lebanon is a source of mystery and inconvenience for Mohammed al-Jamal, whose family owned the property long before Europeans turned up and drew the lines that created the borders of the modern Middle East. [...] One of the borders they drew cut through al-Qasr, among numerous small farming villages dotting the lush fertile land fed by the streams of Mount Hermel in the remote northeastern corner of Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley. [...] At a Hezbollah office in Hermel, the Shiite town that administers al-Qasr, an official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to talk to the news media denounced the fragmenting landscape as an American plot to split the Arab world into weak, divided statelets to affirm Israel as the region’s most powerful country.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2013-04-21): A shell and two rockets hit the road leading to the Sahlat al-Ma' area in the town of al-Qasr, NNA said. [...] Several shells landed in al-Qasr and neighboring villages on Saturday. They triggered panic and residents rushed to take cover indoors as shops in Hermel closed. [...] The Syrian army meanwhile secured the road linking the Lebanese-Syrian border along the Orontes river to the west of Qusayr.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2024-08-25): Summit site of Qasr Antar [edit]Recently have been additionally discovered in 2003 the Qasr Chbib complex, made of two small Roman temples situated just a few hundred meters from the summit of Mount Hermon. Both of the sanctuaries have northern walls that were carved out of solid bedrock.[15] [...] The recently found Qasr Chbib is a complex of two Roman temples situated a few hundred meters from the summit of Mount Hermon.[24] Both of the sanctuaries have northern walls that were carved out of solid bedrock of the mountain. [...] - Qasr Antar temple at the summit of Mount Hermon - photo on Flickr - Qasr Antar temple at the summit of Mount Hermon - photo on Library of Congress website - Roman Temples of the Bekaa - Lebanese Ministry of Tourism Guide - Sir Charles Warren's report on the ruins at the summit of Mt. Hermon
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2013-03-20): NNA said the shells landed on the outskirts of the town of al-Qasr in Hermel district. [...] But a local security services official told Agence France Presse that "around 9:00 am, two shells and a rocket fell on the outskirts of the village of Sahlet al-Ma" that lies near al-Qasr. [...] Let them both fight it out on Syrian land not ours who cares what happens there but not on Lebanon's territory. Kick the tripoli guys out of Lebanon if they are willing to die in vain they won't be missed. But keep the trouble out of our country.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2017-11-16): Reports of the ebb and flow of fighting in the following weeks were often confused and contradictory. Nevertheless, the SAA and Hizb Allah slowly gained ground, capturing villages to the west and southwest of Qusayr. Hizb Allah’s role in the fighting triggered several rocket barrages into the Shi`a-populated Hermel district of Lebanon’s northern Bekaa. On April 14, rockets struck Hawsh Sayyed Ali, Sahlat al-My, Qwak and Qasr in Lebanon, killing two people.[13] More rockets hit the same area on April 21 and April 23.[14] As the SAA and Hizb Allah pushed the rebels back toward Qusayr, the Lebanese Shi`a-populated areas of the northern Bekaa fell beyond the range of the 107mm, 122mm and homemade rockets fired by the anti-Assad rebels from the northeast.[15] The Hermel area, however, was subject to several more rocket salvoes fired from a mountainous area in Syria due east.[16] [...] [7] Personal interviews, Shi`a residents from Safafah village in Syria and Hawsh Beit Ali and Qasr villages in Lebanon, Qasr and Hawsh Beit Ali, Lebanon, October 16, 2012.
Claim: Qasr is a territory of Lebanon (Qasr, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2013-05-05): Katyusha Fired from Syria Hits al-Qasr as Shells Strike Akkar Towns إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربيةA Katyusha rocket fired from Syrian territory landed in the middle of the Hermel town of al-Qasr in the Bekaa on Sunday, state-run National News Agency reported. [...] "A rocket fired from the positions of the armed opposition in Syria's Qusayr hit the Lebanese town of al-Qasr," the Beirut-based, pan-Arab television al-Mayadeen said. [...] On April 14, two people were killed and five others were wounded when rockets fired from Syria hit al-Qasr and and the nearby town of Hawsh al-Sayyed Ali in the Hermel District.