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Lebanon: Army Seizes Ammonium Nitrate, Equipment to Manufacture Captagon In Bekaa

Authorities seized 20 tons of the dangerous chemical stored inside a truck parked at a warehouse early this month. (NNA)
Authorities seized 20 tons of the dangerous chemical stored inside a truck parked at a warehouse early this month. (NNA)
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Lebanon: Army Seizes Ammonium Nitrate, Equipment to Manufacture Captagon In Bekaa

Authorities seized 20 tons of the dangerous chemical stored inside a truck parked at a warehouse early this month. (NNA)
Authorities seized 20 tons of the dangerous chemical stored inside a truck parked at a warehouse early this month. (NNA)

The Lebanese army on Tuesday said it has seized quantities of ammonium nitrate at a gas station in the country's northeastern region of Arsal in Bekaa.

“On October 4, and following information about the presence of ammonium nitrate in the town of Arsal, an army patrol and military intelligence conducted a raid on a gas station in the town and seized 28,275 kilograms of ammonium nitrate,” the Lebanese army said in a statement.

It added that the bags storing the material indicated a nitrogen content of 26 per cent. The Army sent samples of the seized substance to check the percentage of nitrogen it contains.

The military detained one Lebanese national and three Syrians in connection to the case.

In September, Lebanese authorities seized 20 tons of ammonium nitrate -- the same chemical behind a deadly explosion last year at Beirut’s port -- in the eastern Bekaa Valley.

On Tuesday, Lebanon’s National News Agency reported that the detainees in the Bekaa Nitrate case appeared before the military investigative judge, Marcel Bassil. It said the file was referred to him by the Acting First Military Investigative Judge Fadi Sawan.

Prime Minister Najib Mikati had announced earlier that the substance seized in Bekaa last month was different from the one that caused the explosion at the Beirut Port on August 4, 2020.

Ammonium nitrate is an odorless crystalline substance commonly used as a fertilizer that has been the cause of numerous industrial explosions over the decades. At least 214 people were killed and some 6,500 others wounded on August 4, 2020 when a shipment of the chemical carelessly stocked at the Beirut port for years ignited and caused a massive blast.

Separately, an army patrol seized on Tuesday "Captagon-manufacturing equipment and other material," it said in the statement. The equipment was stored in several farms in the Bekaa Valley.

A Syrian man suspected of having links to the case was arrested.

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Israeli Army Reaches Outskirts of Litani River in Southern Lebanon

An Israeli tank loaded onto a truck being transported to the border with southern Lebanon in the Upper Galilee (EPA)
An Israeli tank loaded onto a truck being transported to the border with southern Lebanon in the Upper Galilee (EPA)
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Israeli Army Reaches Outskirts of Litani River in Southern Lebanon

An Israeli tank loaded onto a truck being transported to the border with southern Lebanon in the Upper Galilee (EPA)
An Israeli tank loaded onto a truck being transported to the border with southern Lebanon in the Upper Galilee (EPA)

Israeli forces have launched their largest ground incursion into southern Lebanon since the conflict began, reaching the outskirts of the Litani River near Deirmimas.

They entered the town’s edges in an effort to separate Nabatieh from Marjayoun and prepare for an attack on the town of Taybeh from the west and north.

This move also aimed to neutralize Taybeh hill, which overlooks the Khiam plain, where Israel plans to extend its operations and capture the city of Khiam.

Lebanese media reported that Israel set up a checkpoint at the Deirmimas junction, cutting off Marjayoun from Nabatieh.

They also blocked the western entrance to Deirmimas near a fuel station using earth mounds, with Israeli military vehicles stationed there. Reports also said Israeli forces prevented UNIFIL and the Lebanese army from passing toward Marjayoun.

Lebanese sources following the battle in the south reported that Israeli forces advanced five kilometers west from the town of Kfar Kila, moving through olive groves. This advance took advantage of the absence of Hezbollah fighters in Christian areas like Qlayaa, Bir al-Muluk, and Deirmimas.

The sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that this allowed Israeli forces to reach the outskirts of the Litani River for the first time since 2006, cutting off Nabatieh from Marjayoun. Israeli artillery had previously targeted this route several times, and drones had carried out strikes there.

Israel supported its ground advance with heavy artillery fire. Lebanese security sources said Israeli artillery targeted hills overlooking Deirmimas throughout Thursday night into Friday, hitting locations like Beaufort Castle, Arnoun, Yihmour, Wadi Zawtar, and Deir Siryan.

This fire typically provides cover for infantry advances. The sources also confirmed that Israeli ground movements were backed by airstrikes and drones for added security.

They speculated the advance followed a route from Kfar Kila through Tall al-Nahas and Bir al-Muluk toward Deirmimas, which is almost empty of residents and has no Hezbollah presence.

Hezbollah fired rockets at Israeli forces in the area, with three statements confirming the targeting of Israeli positions and vehicles near Deirmimas.

Media reports mentioned multiple rocket strikes on Israeli targets in Khiam and near Tall al-Nahas, as well as a guided missile attack on Israeli movements near oil groves close to the Marqos station at Deirmimas’ edge.

A photo shared by Lebanese media showed an Israeli tank behind an exposed hill east of Qlayaa, protected from the west and north. To the south, Israeli forces entered the town of Deirmimas, which overlooks the position.

Military expert Mustafa Asaad said the image, showing a bulldozer behind a tank at the Qlayaa-Marjayoun-Deirmimas junction, suggests that infantry units secured the area—either on foot or in fast vehicles—before entering Deirmimas.

The town’s mayor confirmed to local media that Israeli forces made a “small incursion” into Deirmimas, advancing through olive groves from Kfar Kila.

Hezbollah has stated it does not have military positions in Christian or Druze areas in southern Lebanon, as these communities oppose its presence. Sources close to Hezbollah say this is due to political reasons and security concerns.