Army: Lebanese troops capture senior operative from al-Qaida-linked group near Syrian border

BEIRUT – The Lebanese army says its soldiers have captured a senior operative with an al-Qaida-linked group that has carried out attacks across the Middle East.

The army says in a statement that Jamal Daftardar of the Abdullah Azzam Brigades was detained during a raid in an eastern Lebanese village near the Syrian border.

The army says another gunman, who threatened the force with a grenade, was killed in Wednesday's raid.

The capture came a day after the Abdullah Azzam Brigades vowed to target Iran and Hezbollah following the death of its leader in Lebanon. The leader, Majid al-Majid, was arrested by the Lebanese army last month and authorities said he later died at a military hospital in Beirut from chronic illness.