NICOSIA [MENL] -- Lebanon has launched a military build-up along the Syrian border.

Officials said the Defense Ministry has ordered the deployment of thousands of Lebanese Army troops along the mountainous frontier with Syria. They said the order came in wake of a recommendation by the National Security Council on Sept. 28.

Over the weekend, the military shut down smuggling routes established by Syria during its 30-year presence in Lebanon. The routes have been used by the Syrian-sponsored Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command.

Officials said Syria has facilitated the flow of PFLP-GC insurgents and weaponry into Lebanon. They said that over the last two weeks the insurgency group, also linked to Hizbullah, has sought to bolster its presence in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley as well as in the Beirut area.