Al-Qaida-linked Syrian rebels release 5 Lebanese troops captured in cross-border raid

BEIRUT – Lebanon's official news agency says an al-Qaida-linked Syrian rebel group has released five Lebanese soldiers captured earlier this month in a cross-border raid.

The soldiers were captured when militants from Syria rampaged through the Lebanese town of Arsal for five days, kidnapping and killing soldiers before withdrawing toward the Syrian border, taking with them a number of captive soldiers and policemen.

The National News Agency said Sunday that the Nusra Front, al-Qaida's Syrian affiliate, released the five men late Saturday and that the army received them Sunday morning. All five are Sunni Muslims.