Protesters rallied Friday outside Prime Minister Najib Mikati’s residence in north Lebanon, calling for the release of Islamists detained in the country’s largest prison and for the release of the survivors of a recent ambush in Syria. Amid tight security measures, over 200 protesters held black flags and posters of two men who they say survived an ambush late last year after they infiltrated the town of Tal Kalakh, near the border with Lebanon. The protesters demanded that Hasan Srour and Mohammad al-Rafei be released and handed over to Lebanon. Speaking to reporters at the rally, Sheikh Mohammad Ibrahim, who represents the families, accused the government of procrastination in dealing with the matter. Ibrahim urged the families of the detained Islamists and the families of fighters killed in the Tal Kalakh ambush to participate in a protest planned for Sunday at the Arida border crossing to call for the release of those detained.
