Sep 8, 2017

Lebanon on Friday held a day of national mourning for 10 soldiers kidnapped and executed by the Islamic State group in the region on the country's eastern border with Syria.

President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister Saad Hariri took part in an official ceremony to honour the men at the defence ministry in Yarze, outside Beirut, which was also attended by grieving relatives.

The coffins of the men, draped in the Lebanese flag, were marched into the ministry courtyard by soldiers as sobbing family members dressed in black looked on.

The remains of the soldiers were retrieved from the border region last month after a battle against IS in the area that ended with an evacuation deal.

"Our joy in the victory over terrorism remains sorrowful, for we were hoping to free you unharmed from the terrorists and return you to your army and your families," said army chief General Joseph Aoun.