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Lebanon's Mufti Condemns Hezbollah, Accuses Corrupt Clique of Starving People

Lebanon's Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdel Latif Derian
Lebanon's Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdel Latif Derian
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Lebanon's Mufti Condemns Hezbollah, Accuses Corrupt Clique of Starving People

Lebanon's Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdel Latif Derian
Lebanon's Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdel Latif Derian

Lebanon's Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdel Latif Derian accused the "corrupt clique" in power of starving the Lebanese people, blaming them for destroying everything the Lebanese built in 100 years, including the judiciary and the banking sector and Lebanon's relations with Arab and international countries.

In his message on the eve of Ramadan month, the Mufti warned that the military institution and army are being deprived for the sake of militias affiliated with foreign forces, in reference to Hezbollah.

He also urged Lebanese citizens to participate "without hesitation" in the May 15 legislative elections.

"People feel hungry during Ramadan because they choose to fast, but starvation results from failed policies, corrupt rulers, complete disregard for human rights, and stealing people's money."

The Mufti accused the corrupt politicians of turning Lebanon into a country that suffers from starvation, fear, and deprivation while they keep "devouring the money you have unlawfully taken," saying it would be better if they fast from corruption and falsehood and give Lebanon "an opportunity to breathe."

He also condemned the corrupt saying they destroyed Lebanon's relations with Arab and international countries, attempting to undermine the country's identity and affiliation.

Derian criticized the "desperate attempts to ruin Lebanon's identity and constitution, and destroy the principle of separation of powers in favor of personal feuds and miserable political interests."

He summarized his message with central positions: the solidarity among the Lebanese at all levels, and solidarity from Arab countries and the world since the Beirut Port explosion, despite everyone's anger and despair over the lack of reforms.

In his second position, the Mufti addressed the upcoming elections, saying it is a peaceful way to achieve the goals which the Lebanese must follow without hesitation.

He urged all Lebanese voters to participate in the polls, "any alternative produced by the elections is better than the coercive and corrupt authority, and some candidates are motivated and willing to create change."

Derian rejected the estimates that most candidates are of the same kind and are opportunists, saying: "I see that many candidates, whether old or new, are people who want change."

"Any alternative produced by the elections is better than the coercive and corrupt authority, and some candidates are motivated and willing to create change," he said.

Derian concluded his speech by addressing the national initiatives that unite Lebanese who suffered from the authority, such as the national dialogue.

He called for a revolution against the oppressors, the tyrants, and the corrupt, urging all to choose alternatives through the elections.

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Arab World

Israel Army Says Soldier Killed ‘in Combat’ in South Lebanon

Israeli military vehicles drive in Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, April 30, 2026. (Reuters)
Israeli military vehicles drive in Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, April 30, 2026. (Reuters)
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Israel Army Says Soldier Killed ‘in Combat’ in South Lebanon

Israeli military vehicles drive in Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, April 30, 2026. (Reuters)
Israeli military vehicles drive in Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, April 30, 2026. (Reuters)

The Israeli army said Thursday that a soldier was killed in southern Lebanon, the fourth such death since a fragile ceasefire took effect there earlier this month.

Sergeant Liem Ben Hemo, 19, "died in combat in the south of Lebanon", the army said in a statement, adding that another soldier was wounded in the incident.

The latest death brings to 17 the number of soldiers killed since the war began with Iran-backed Hezbollah on March 2, according to an AFP tally based on military figures.

One Israeli civilian working for the army has also been killed.

Arab World

South Lebanese Mayors, Residents Protest Israeli Demolitions

A child waves a Lebanese flag while residents, mukhtars, and inhabitants of the devastated southern Lebanese border villages protest against the destruction of their villages and being prevented from returning by order of the Israeli army, at Martyrs’ Square in central Beirut on April 30, 2026. (AFP)
A child waves a Lebanese flag while residents, mukhtars, and inhabitants of the devastated southern Lebanese border villages protest against the destruction of their villages and being prevented from returning by order of the Israeli army, at Martyrs’ Square in central Beirut on April 30, 2026. (AFP)
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South Lebanese Mayors, Residents Protest Israeli Demolitions

A child waves a Lebanese flag while residents, mukhtars, and inhabitants of the devastated southern Lebanese border villages protest against the destruction of their villages and being prevented from returning by order of the Israeli army, at Martyrs’ Square in central Beirut on April 30, 2026. (AFP)
A child waves a Lebanese flag while residents, mukhtars, and inhabitants of the devastated southern Lebanese border villages protest against the destruction of their villages and being prevented from returning by order of the Israeli army, at Martyrs’ Square in central Beirut on April 30, 2026. (AFP)

Dozens of residents and local officials from southern Lebanon gathered in Beirut on Thursday to protest Israel's destruction of their villages, which has been ongoing despite a fragile ceasefire.

Before and after the truce agreed on April 17 in the war between Israel and Hezbollah, Israel has been carrying out demolitions in the south and preventing the return of residents to more than 50 villages.

"We can't go back. It's been bulldozed -- basically there's nothing to go back to," Ibrahim Hamza, the mayor of the coastal town of Naqoura, told AFP.

"The situation is dire and the Israeli enemy is present inside the village."

Standing in Beirut's central square, protesters carried Lebanese flags and photos of their devastated villages, some had signs asking "where is the ceasefire?".

Two days after the ceasefire began, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said the country's military would "remove the houses in the contact villages near the border that served in every respect as Hezbollah terror outposts".

Israel has declared a "yellow line", some 10 kilometers (six miles) deep inside Lebanon, where its troops are operating.

"What is happening in Bint Jbeil... is systematic annihilation and destruction of trees and people," said Mohamed Souheili, 56, a local official in the town, now on the Israeli-controlled side of the "yellow line".

The southern town witnessed intense clashes in the days leading up to the ceasefire, evoking for many Lebanese its history of major battles in earlier wars.

"Trees are being uprooted from the ground, and not a single sign of life remains in the town," Souheili said.

The Lebanese government's scientific research council estimated earlier this month that the war had already damaged or destroyed more than 50,000 housing units.

AFP photos from April 15 showed extensive destruction in two such villages, including Mais al-Jabal.

Hosn Qabalan, from Mais al-Jabal, lost her home during an earlier round of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in 2023 and 2024.

"We went back and our house was gone," the 55-year-old grandmother said, "we sat on the rubble".

Lebanon accused Israel, which refused to withdraw from five positions in southern Lebanon during the 2024 ceasefire, of carrying out a campaign of destruction in those villages and preventing their reconstruction.

Qabalan is nonetheless determined to make it back home once again.

"Even if we have to sit on bare ground, what matters is that we return to our land," she said.

Arab World

Hezbollah Signals Possible Return to 1980s 'Tactics' Against Israeli Army

Israeli military vehicles maneuver on the Lebanese side of the border, as seen from the Upper Galilee in northern Israel, 29 April 2026, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. EPA/ATEF SAFADI
Israeli military vehicles maneuver on the Lebanese side of the border, as seen from the Upper Galilee in northern Israel, 29 April 2026, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. EPA/ATEF SAFADI
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Hezbollah Signals Possible Return to 1980s 'Tactics' Against Israeli Army

Israeli military vehicles maneuver on the Lebanese side of the border, as seen from the Upper Galilee in northern Israel, 29 April 2026, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. EPA/ATEF SAFADI
Israeli military vehicles maneuver on the Lebanese side of the border, as seen from the Upper Galilee in northern Israel, 29 April 2026, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. EPA/ATEF SAFADI

Overlapping media leaks from within Hezbollah on activating “martyrdom fighters” (suicide operatives) have raised questions about the next phase on the southern front, amid talk of non-traditional combat options that echo the warfare of the 1980s.

Media leaks citing military sources within Hezbollah said the group is studying a return to “1980s tactics,” including activating what it described as “martyrdom units.”

The issue gains additional weight in light of prior rhetoric within the group. Former Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah described fighters in the south during the 2024 “support war” as “martyrdom fighters,” reflecting the nature of the fighting and battlefield conditions.

The renewed use of the term raises questions over whether it is mobilizing rhetoric or an indication of potential operational choices.

Environmental Constraints and Technological Shift

Retired Brigadier General Yarub Sakhr told Asharq Al-Awsat that “the field reality in southern Lebanon makes talk of a return to suicide operations closer to a theoretical proposition than a practical option.”

He added: “The south today is largely depopulated due to displacement and destruction, which strips this type of operation of one of its key elements, namely the ability to conceal within a civilian environment.”

“Technological advances in surveillance and reconnaissance, along with Israel’s extensive target bank, make carrying out such operations extremely difficult, if not impossible, under constant monitoring and precise tracking, in addition to the difficulty of movement and field access.”

He noted that “signaling the existence of such operations along the border with Israel is used in a propaganda context,” adding that “the real message goes beyond the military dimension to the Lebanese domestic arena, where this rhetoric is employed as a pressure tool on officials and political forces to push them toward certain foreign policy choices.”

According to Sakhr invoking the 1980s approach does not stop at suicide operations but also recalls a broader pattern that included kidnappings and assassinations.

He affirmed that the comparison between the current situation in the south and that of the 1980s is not accurate, stressing that “talk of a return to this mode of warfare remains within the realm of slogans and political pressure rather than a viable military option under current conditions.”

Between Theory and Application

By contrast, retired Brigadier General Fadi Daoud told Asharq Al-Awsat: “Talk of reviving 1980s methods is not merely media rhetoric, but reflects that this option exists within the party’s available capabilities.”

He said references to suicide operatives ready to act “fall within the human capabilities that have long been one of the party’s strengths.”

“These operations, despite major technological advances in surveillance and monitoring, can still have battlefield impact, because technology remains limited in effectiveness against a human element determined to reach its target.”

Daoud said the effectiveness of such operations “depends on the nature of the target, the level of surrounding security protection, and field measures around sites and facilities,” noting that “the chances of success vary from case to case based on these factors.”

He said any potential use of such capabilities would remain directed at Israeli targets, adding that carrying out such operations inside Israel would require infiltration and direct access to the target, which faces major field challenges and makes success rates uneven.

“Merely signaling this option carries psychological and strategic weight, recalling past experiences in the Israeli memory and sending a message that any settlement that does not take balances into account could lead to escalation outside conventional frameworks.”

Operational Meaning of the Term

A source following Hezbollah’s operations told Asharq Al-Awsat that “the use of the term ‘martyrdom fighters’ does not necessarily mean a return to traditional suicide operations, but reflects the nature of the current battlefield phase under the siege imposed on areas in southern Lebanon.”

He added: “Fighters are fully aware of the scale of risks surrounding them and deal with them on the basis of fighting to the utmost limits.”

The source noted: “What is meant by the term is readiness for engagement under the most difficult battlefield conditions, and continuing the confrontation until death if imposed, not as a separate tactical option but as part of the nature of the battle itself.”