Lebanon Cracks Down on 2 Houthi-Affiliated TV Stations

A general view of Beirut central district, Lebanon, August 22, 2019. Picture taken August 22, 2019. (Reuters)
A general view of Beirut central district, Lebanon, August 22, 2019. Picture taken August 22, 2019. (Reuters)
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Lebanon Cracks Down on 2 Houthi-Affiliated TV Stations

A general view of Beirut central district, Lebanon, August 22, 2019. Picture taken August 22, 2019. (Reuters)
A general view of Beirut central district, Lebanon, August 22, 2019. Picture taken August 22, 2019. (Reuters)

Lebanese Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi requested that the General Security and Internal Security Forces probe two television stations affiliated with the Iran-backed Houthi militias in Yemen that are operating from Beirut.

He ordered the probe to determine from where the al-Masira and al-Sahat channels are being broadcast so that the necessary measures can be taken against them.

The Interior Ministry announced it had received a letter from Yemeni Foreign Minister Ahmed bin Awad bin Mubarak over how the Houthis were "carrying out hostile acts of incitement from within Lebanese territories" through those stations, which are operating without a license.

The Ministry said the channels "may impede official efforts to bolster Lebanese relations with Arab countries and undermine their sovereignty, international laws and the Arab League charter."

Mawlawi also requested that the Information and Telecommunications Ministries probe the channels.



Israeli Military: 5 Soldiers Killed in Combat in South Lebanon

Israeli Iron Dome air defense system fires to intercept rockets that were launched from Lebanon, as seen from Haifa, northern Israel, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Israeli Iron Dome air defense system fires to intercept rockets that were launched from Lebanon, as seen from Haifa, northern Israel, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
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Israeli Military: 5 Soldiers Killed in Combat in South Lebanon

Israeli Iron Dome air defense system fires to intercept rockets that were launched from Lebanon, as seen from Haifa, northern Israel, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Israeli Iron Dome air defense system fires to intercept rockets that were launched from Lebanon, as seen from Haifa, northern Israel, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Five Israeli soldiers were killed and 16 others wounded in combat in southern Lebanon in recent weeks, the Israeli military said in a statement on Thursday.

Hezbollah leader Naim Kassem said in a speech aired Wednesday that the Lebanese group is open for ceasefire negotiations only once “the enemy stops its aggression.”

His speech marked the 40-day mourning period since former Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah was assassinated in Beirut.

Hezbollah began firing into Israel on Oct. 8, 2023, in solidarity with Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Since the conflict erupted, more than 3,000 people have been killed and some 13,600 wounded in Lebanon, the Health Ministry reported.