The Daily Star - 24 detained in crackdown on illegal construction - April 9, 2011

April 09, 2011 12:00 AM

By Mohammed Zaatari

The Daily Star

SIDON: Twenty-four people were detained Friday on charges of illegal construction works on public property on the coast from Sidon to Tyre, security sources told The Daily Star. The sources said 12 pieces of heavy construction machinery were confiscated after Internal Security Forces personnel cracked down to end the recent rise in illegal construction activity on public property. The South Lebanon Security Council approved a series of procedures in cooperation with the Interior Ministry and the South Lebanon state prosecutor to limit violations in construction works Wednesday. Speaker Nabih Berri urged security forces to stop violators during a meeting with south Lebanon Governor Nicholas Abu Daher and the head of the South Lebanon Internal Security Forces, Brig. Monzer Ayyoubi. Separately, ISF commander Brig. Ashraf Rifi issued a memo Friday tasking the relevant security bodies to draft an action plan to thwart illegal construction works. ISF members were deployed in a number of towns including Adloun, Sarafand, Baisarieh and Zrarieh, security sources said. Rifi instructed ISF members to allow contractors who were granted construction licenses by municipalities the right to build on surface areas under 120 square meters within towns and villages, but excluding cities. Residents in Zahrani and Tyre told The Daily Star that contractors were cooperating with residents to avoid the ISF raids by setting up an informal “early-warning” alarm system. The alarm system consists of individuals deployed on a number of strategic hills and tasked with spotting ISF patrols before their arrival at construction locations, thus allowing contractors enough time to halt any illegal activities and hide machinery. ISF members had earlier sought to avoid crackdown on illegal construction activity in a bid to avoid confrontations between residents and the police.