Hezbollah has remained largely silent amid growing public anger and evidence of an explosives-smuggling plot believed to have been intended to facilitate political assassinations in Beirut, making an announcement on Tuesday that only addressed the issue of compensation funds for displaced individuals.
Lebanese forces seized 500 kilograms of explosives from a vehicle at a checkpoint in Dahr al-Baidar in the Bekaa Valley late last week, arresting two individuals connected to Hezbollah during what some reports are claiming was an accidental discovery. Embedded within the explosives were metal balls and nails, which are used to maximize damage.
Though credit was given to the Lebanese Military for locating the explosives, in addition to another nearly 200 kg. along the Lebanese-Syrian border earlier this week, some Lebanese officials and media have reported that the explosives were uncovered when the vehicle transporting them was involved in an accident.
The Alma Education and Research Center noted that the Dahr al-Baidar checkpoint, where the explosives passed through, is a permanent and well-known Internal Security Forces checkpoint, and they questioned why Hezbollah would feel bold enough to risk such a hefty shipment if it had reason to believe the vehicle would undergo inspection.
Based on this observation, the center concluded that Hezbollah was certain that there would be no significant inspection, which raises the possibility that similar shipments had previously passed through.
Security cameras smashed, possibly linked to explosive smuggling
Former judge and Lebanese Parliament member representing the Zahle district, George Okais, also confirmed that he had complained back in March that security cameras in the Chtoura Municipality and in the town of Jalala had been repeatedly smashed, in what he now believes to be a series of incidents connected to the smuggling of explosives.
Alternatively, the center suggested, Hezbollah might have always intended for the shipment to be discovered with the aim of sending a threatening psychological message to the political and security figures working to disarm the organization. Hezbollah’s leadership, set against both disarming and Beirut’s negotiated ceasefire with Jerusalem, has frequently threatened civil war over the past few months.
MP Najat Saliba claimed to Al Jadeed News that the same type of explosives located in the van had been used to assassinate former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri, killed by Hezbollah on February 14, 2005, in Beirut, after a massive truck bomb targeted his motorcade. The attack killed 22 people and wounded over 200.
A Lebanese political source told Kan News that the Iran-backed terror group had been mounting pressure on the Lebanese government to bury the incident. However, both Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salman and Lebanese Justice Minister Adel Nassar have committed to full investigations going ahead without delay.
Nassar told MTV Lebanon that “there are serious questions about whether these explosives are for internal use or to create new pretexts to plunge Lebanon into new wars.”
He added that the explosives were “capable of blowing up an entire neighborhood, and merely storing them in a populated area is considered a crime and warrants prosecution.”
Since news of the incident broke, there has been anger and criticism not only in the opposition camp but also among those aligned with Hezbollah on the issue of Israel.
Lebanese MP Wadhah al-Sadiq, a hardcore critic of Israel, published that even if the explosives had been intended to target the Jewish state, “Whoever wants to confront Israel does not smuggle explosives into Lebanese territory, nor turn Beirut into a destination for shipments of death…”
He added, “We will not accept that the security of the Lebanese remains hostage to Hezbollah’s weapons, nor that Beirut once again becomes an arena for assassinations, bombings, and settling scores under any pretext.”
Hezbollah’s Tuesday announcement of $14,000 compensation for displaced individuals has been overshadowed by the incident, with officials paying closer attention to where the funds are coming from.
Questions about sources of funds, Iranian links
Lebanese MP Fouad Makhzoumi said that there were “serious questions about the sources of these funds, how they were brought into Lebanon, and how they were transported and distributed outside official financial frameworks.”
“Assisting our affected people is a national duty, but their suffering cannot serve as a cover for parallel financial systems or a pretext for circumventing Lebanese laws…,” he said.
“There can be no sovereignty for a state that does not monopolize arms nor assert its authority over the movement of money. Nor can we accept a state within a state, neither militarily nor financially. Lebanon needs one state, one legitimate weapon, and a law applied to all without exception.”
Despite Hezbollah issuing no official response to the allegations, a few figures within or aligned with the group have spoken in its defense.
Hezbollah MP Ibrahim Mousawi insisted that the group had “nothing to be ashamed or embarrassed about,” adding that making allegations against it were unacceptable and denying that Hezbollah had ever used its military capabilities internally.
Likewise, sanctioned Hezbollah financier Madi Aqil insisted that it was necessary for Hezbollah to transport the explosives into Lebanon for the next war with Israel and admitted that the group had been responsible for the explosives imported through Syria.
“If Hezbollah claims responsibility for this matter, it would be making clear to the Lebanese state that it does not accept the state’s decision,” he told Al-Jadeed, arguing the Lebanese Republic did not have the right to decide on negotiations or arms.