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Lebanon security chief returns to Beirut after positive COVID-19 test in U.S.

Major General Abbas Ibrahim, head of Lebanon's General Security agency is seen in Beirut

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Top Lebanese security official Major-General Abbas Ibrahim returned to Beirut from the United States on Friday where he had tested positive for COVID-19, local media reported.

Ibrahim's positive test result, announced on Monday, had delayed his return from talks in Washington and forced him to cancel scheduled meetings in Paris.

"General Ibrahim will continue his work after the end of the necessary quarantine period due to him contracting corona," local broadcaster LBC said. There were no more details on the nature of his quarantine.

Ibrahim had met U.S. national security adviser Robert O'Brien at the White House last week to discuss American citizens held in Syria, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Lebanon's directorate of General Security, which he heads, had said he was in good health when it announced his diagnosis on Monday.

(Reporting By Maha El Dahan; Editing by Andrew Heavens)