Former Lebanese prime minister Saad Hariri on Saturday contacted Interior Minister Nuhad el Mashnouq and Public Security Director General Abbas Ibrahim, who briefed him on the details of the arrest of fugitive Ahmad el Assir as he attempted to escape via Rafiq Hariri Airport Saturday morning.

Hariri praised the vigilance demonstrated by Public Security members at the Airport in managing to thwart the escape attempts of wanted fugitives, a statement by Hariri's office said.

Hariri also stressed on "the important efforts exerted by the State's legitimate security and military apparatuses for the protection of national stability, and their tracking down of wanted outlaws," the statement added.

Lebanese security authorities said Saturday that Sunni cleric Ahmed al Assir who was arrested in Beirut's Rafik Hariri International Airport was trying to flee to Nigeria through Cairo International Airport as a transit stop.