Hezbollah used the return of residents of southern Lebanon to their homes and their confrontations with Israeli forces to portray itself as still in control of the security situation on the ground.
Twenty-four people were killed and over 120 wounded in the clashes as residents tried to make their way back to their homes in the South at the end of the deadline in the ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel.
Hezbollah Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem declared on Monday that the developments over the past two days are a “violation of the ceasefire and underscore Lebanon’s need for the resistance (Hezbollah).”
He stressed that his Iran-backed party rejects the extension of the ceasefire, adding that Israel must withdraw from areas it is still occupying in southern Lebanon. “We will not accept any justification for the extension of the 60-day ceasefire,” he stated.
The ceasefire has been extended to February 18.
The United States and France - countries sponsoring the ceasefire - as well as the United Nations, will be held responsible for the consequences of the delay in the withdrawal, Qassem went on to say.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah declared that “the resistance alone protects the land and can help the people return to their homes.”
In a statement on Sunday, he stressed: “No one can eliminate the ‘army, people, resistance’ term from the ministerial statement.”
Lebanon is in the process of forming a new government and the term has often been a point of contention between rival political blocs, with opponents now demanding that it be omitted from the new cabinet’s statement.
As residents of the South made their way home on Sunday, later that day, Hezbollah supporters riding on motorcycles roamed the Beirut neighborhoods that are known for their opposition to the party.
Riding through the Christian neighborhood of Ain al-Rummaneh and Sunni Sakiet al-Janzeer, the supporters flew Hezbollah flags and chanted party and sectarian slogans to incite the residents in scenes that were shared on social media and widely condemned in the country.
Domineering mentality
Observers said the provocations were a direct message to newly elected President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister-designate Nawaf Salam in that “no one can eliminate Hezbollah’s popular support and that the party can reshuffle the political and security cards if it does not get what it wants in the new government and ministerial statement.”
Leading member of the Lebanese Forces and former MP Antoine Zahra said: “Hezbollah is once again using its domineering approach against the Lebanese people given its military and political losses.”
“It is trying to compensate for these losses through politics” after it had been controlling the country for years, he told Asharq Al-Awsat.
He wondered at the “state of denial Hezbollah is experiencing and its provocations of neighborhoods that had taken in its supporters during the war.”
He said Sunday’s provocations in Beirut were an attempt by Hezbollah to demonstrate its domineering approach and hegemony over the majority of the Lebanese people.
Return to South
In a statement on Sunday, Hezbollah said the return of the residents of the South to their homes was a new demonstration of “dignity written by the people of the resistance. These people are the resistance’s most powerful weapon.”
“We bow before the might of the people of the resistance and underscore that the ‘army, people and resistance’ equation protects Lebanon from enemies, and it is not just empty words. It is a reality experienced by the Lebanese people every day. They embody it with their perseverance and sacrifices,” continued the statement.
It called on “all Lebanese people to stand by the residents of the south to demonstrate national solidarity and build a new meaning for sovereignty that is based on liberation and victory.”
The images of people returning to their homes in the South in defiance of Israel and the Hezbollah convoys in Beirut gave the party a morale boost and it has been using it to impose its conditions on the formation of the new government, including the “army, people and resistance” equation.
The majority of the Lebanese people believe that the equation no longer stands given Hezbollah’s defeat by Israel and its ensuing political defeat with Aoun’s election and Salam’s designation as PM.
“This equation will never again see the light of day,” stressed Zahra.
“They can do whatever they like if they take control of parliament and the government through democratic means,” he stated.
“The country must be ruled by the constitution and laws,” he demanded.
“No one can rule Lebanon alone. We must either be partners or look for some other way of running the country,” Zahra remarked. Asked to elaborate, he replied: “It could be a federation as this may offer the people a way of liberating themselves from the hegemony of Hezbollah’s weapons.”
Loyal base
The developments in the South and the provocations in Beirut gave the impression that Hezbollah may still be capable of imposing its conditions through street pressure the way it has been doing since 2005.
However, political researcher and Hezbollah expert Kassem Kassir said: “The party doesn’t need such incidents to promote its image. It was still very present politically before the developments in the South unfolded.”
He told Asharq Al-Awsat that the developments were a “message to everyone who questioned Hezbollah’s presence in the region and who believed that its popularity had waned.”
Moreover, they proved that Hezbollah’s supporters are still loyal to it and its choices, he said.
Threat to civil peace
On the convoys in Beirut, Kassir said they were “spontaneous and had nothing to do with Hezbollah.”
The army has since arrested several people involved in the provocations.
In statement, it said that it carried out the arrests after “some citizens, riding on motorcycles, rode around several Lebanese regions while carrying party flags, firing gunshots and chanting provocative slogans.”
It added that it deployed patrols to “prevent the undermining of security and stability”, calling on the people to “act responsibly to protect national unity and coexistence.”
Head of the Free Patriotic Movement MP Gebran Bassil – a former Hezbollah ally – condemned the provocations. The residents of the South were “heroic” as they returned to their homes on Sunday, while “sectarian provocations that night only served to tarnish this heroism,” he said in a post on the X platform.
He added that the sectarian provocations only serve to “deepen the divisions and advocates of this division. Extremism only leads to extremism and Lebanon will be the loser in the end.”
After meeting Aoun on Monday, head of the Kataeb Party MP Sami Gemayel remarked: “Our positive statements and openness are met with scenes we saw in Beirut on Sunday night.”
Asked if he believed the provocations were aimed at pressuring the government to include the “army, people and resistance” term in its statement, he responded: “I don’t think anyone in Lebanon can still be affected by this form of pressure.”
“We have faith in the army and state that are doing their duties” in ensuring the residents of the South return to their homes, he added. “This issue should not be exploited for political gain.”
The Kataeb later issued a statement to condemn Hezbollah’s “flagrant sectarian” provocations in Beirut. “Once again, it returns to its old domineering practices against the people, spreading chaos and stirring instability after all of its political and military goals failed and after the slogans it had long promoted turned out to be empty.”
The Lebanese Forces also slammed the provocations, saying they are part of a “wide Hezbollah campaign aimed at demonstrating that the developments in the South were a major victory for the so-called resistance, completely overlooking the 22 martyrs who were the victims of its ongoing adventures.”
