Lebanon's parliament elected army chief Joseph Aoun head of state on Thursday, filling the vacant presidency with a general who has U.S. support and showing the weakened sway of the Iran-backed Hezbollah group after its devastating war with Israel.

Lebanon's Prime Minister Najib Mikati will on Saturday make his first official trip to neighbouring Syria since the fall of president Bashar al-Assad, his office told AFP.

The fall of the Syrian regime and loss of Iranian influence opens the door for the Lebanese to finally take their fate into their own hands.

After Syria's new authorities arrested an official who issued death sentences to prisoners under ousted president Bashar al-Assad, photos were shared in social media posts that falsely claimed they showed a prison guard who dressed in women's clothing to try to evade capture and escape into neighbouring Lebanon.

The returnees were detained by Syria's new ruling authorities after crossing the border. Read more at straitstimes.com.

A Lebanese security source said Saturday that Bashar al-Assad's uncle, Rifaat al-Assad, left the country via Beirut airport around a week ago, after rebels overthrew his nephew. The source said Rifaat al-Assad departed Lebanon around a week ago and "used a diplomatic passport", without naming his destination.

BEIRUT: Lebanon expelled around 70 Syrian officers and soldiers on Saturday, returning them to Syria after they crossed into the country illegally via informal routes, a Lebanese security official and a war monitor said.

A Lebanese security official and war monitor said the country on Saturday expelled no fewer than 70 Syrian officers and soldiers, returning them to Syria

Tensions are high on Syria’s border with Lebanon. The ouster of President Bashar al-Assad led to worry that violence could spill over into neighboring countries.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that 70 Syrians, including former army officers, were handed over by a Lebanese security delegation to the security forces of the new Syrian government.

An uncle of the recently ousted Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad has fled, via Lebanon, to the United Arab Emirates, according to Lebanese officials. Rifaat al-Assad, known as the “Butcher of Hama”

Meanwhile, Lebanese authorities handed over dozens of Syrian nationals, including former officers in the army, to the new administration in Damascus after they were caught illegally entering Lebanon.V