Lebanese Forces are struggling against legal restrictions that prevent them from searching private properties in the pilot zones that the military is expected to ensure remain free of Hezbollah as part of a US-brokered agreement between Beirut and Jerusalem, according to Lebanese media reports.
Just over a week since the IDF withdrew from these areas, Lebanese newspaper L’Orient-Le Jour reported that the forces are struggling to fulfill their responsibility as they currently lack the legal right to inspect private property. Without such a right, it is unclear how the Lebanese Army can ensure that the zones remain free of Hezbollah’s weapons.
Lebanese law states that a person's place of residence is sacred
Article 14 of the Lebanese Constitution establishes the inviolability of the home. It states that a person’s place of residence is sacred and that no one may enter it except under the specific circumstances and procedures prescribed by law, such as when a judicial warrant has been issued, during emergencies, or in the interest of public safety.
Hezbollah, its supporters, and some individuals concerned with state authority have used Article 14 to argue against the search.
However, Lebanese media reported that many consider the exceptional circumstances facing the country as a reason to justify extending the military’s authority.
Prosecutor Ahmad al-Hajj told the daily, “So far, I have not issued any decision authorizing the search of any private residence,” and that in many areas, few buildings remain intact enough to hold Hezbollah weapons.
“I am waiting for the information that the army will provide me with. If a search is requested, it will require prior authorization from the prosecution, granted only on the basis of serious evidence indicating the presumed presence of weapons. The intelligence must be solid,” he said.
Though Hajj asserted that there must be serious evidence before searches can take place, the IDF regularly found weapons, such as missile launchers, hidden in homes in southern Lebanon.
Only three weeks ago, the Israeli military announced it had confiscated RPG ammunition, anti-tank missiles, vests, helmets, and Hezbollah terrorist organization flags from a home in the village of Tallousa.
Constitutional law expert and former minister Adnan Sayyed Hussein added that “during each search operation, the mukhtar [local elected official], as well as the owner of the property, must be present.”
Displacement proves a difficult barrier to searching buildings
Given that around 20% of Lebanon’s population was displaced during the peak of the war according to United Nations figures, requiring a property owner’s presence to search the building might prove difficult.
“There is no question of searching every house. We have no interest in carrying out systematic searches. If the army were to inspect a large number of homes without finding anything, it would be seen as a failure and would undermine its credibility,” Hajj said.
Justice Minister Adel Nassar stated that “While the principle of the inviolability of the home must be upheld, the law also prohibits the possession of military equipment inside a private residence. The Constitution entrusts the supreme command of the armed forces to the president and does not recognize any parallel military structure. This principle was reaffirmed by the Cabinet.”
The legal restrictions preventing searches of private property are not the first issue raised regarding the Lebanese Armed Forces’ ability to police the pilot zones. On Tuesday, The Jerusalem Post reported on the continued presence of Hezbollah’s civil arms in the municipalities from which Israel withdrew last week.
Hezbollah’s Islamic Health Organization has continued operating in Zawtar al-Gharbiyah and was recorded working alongside the Lebanese military to collect the bodies of Hezbollah terrorists killed during the conflict.
Though civilian in appearance, Hezbollah’s Islamic Health Organization operates under the terror group’s Executive Council and serves as its medical corps during operational activities.
Its personnel and infrastructure have also served a dual purpose during the war, with operatives and weapons allegedly transported in ambulances and Hezbollah operation centers constructed within clinics.
Moran Levanoni, a researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), explained to the Post that while Hezbollah’s civil arms were not restricted under the agreement, their continued presence poses legitimate security risks, including the potential for espionage or the use of facilities as a front to enable the terror group’s return.