Hezbollah Provocations Spark Condemnation in Lebanon, Refusal to Be Drawn to Strife

Residents of the southern Lebanese village of Kfar Kila parade with Hezbollah flags on the Burj al-Muoluk road on the outskirts of their village on January 27, 2025. (AFP)
Residents of the southern Lebanese village of Kfar Kila parade with Hezbollah flags on the Burj al-Muoluk road on the outskirts of their village on January 27, 2025. (AFP)
TT
20

Hezbollah Provocations Spark Condemnation in Lebanon, Refusal to Be Drawn to Strife

Residents of the southern Lebanese village of Kfar Kila parade with Hezbollah flags on the Burj al-Muoluk road on the outskirts of their village on January 27, 2025. (AFP)
Residents of the southern Lebanese village of Kfar Kila parade with Hezbollah flags on the Burj al-Muoluk road on the outskirts of their village on January 27, 2025. (AFP)

Hezbollah supporters have resorted to provocative rallies in several areas in Beirut, Mount Lebanon and the South to "deliver messages" to President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister-designate Nawaf Salam.

Supporters of the Iran-backed party have since Sunday mobilized motorcycle convoys, with riders raising Hezbollah flags and chanting sectarian slogans, in areas that are opposed to the party.

Hezbollah had constantly employed such methods to deliver security messages whenever Lebanon was in the process of meeting political deadlines, such as the formation of a government as is the case at the moment.

The first fallout from the provocations was United Arab Emirates businessman Khalaf Ahmad Al Habtoor, the head of Dubai conglomerate Al Habtoor Group, announcing on Tuesday that he had cancelled all planned investments in Lebanon due to continuing instability, and would sell all his properties and investments in the country.

Al Habtoor said in a statement that the unrest and instability in Lebanon by "factions loyal to armed militias in the country paint a grim picture."

"The continued dominance of armed militias (the Shiite militias) and the failure to establish rule of law make it impossible for any investor to proceed with confidence in such an environment," he said.

Last week, Al Habtoor had expressed an intention to invest in Lebanon once a new government was formed.

Provocative convoys

The motorcycle convoys had departed from Beirut’s southern suburbs, known as Dahieh, a Hezbollah stronghold. They headed to several neighborhoods in the capital that are known for their opposition to the party.

The same scenes took place in the Christian town of Maghdouche in the South, leading to a scuffle between the motorists and locals.

On Monday, the locals awoke to Hezbollah slogans spraypainted over their town’s entrance sign.

Similar provocations took place in Christian-majority regions in Mount Lebanon, drawing condemnation from Christian parties and their supporters.

The Lebanese army had announced the arrest of several of the motorists.

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."

Amal warns against provocations

The Amal movement – a close Hezbollah ally – notably warned its supporters against joining the Hezbollah convoys.

In a statement, it warned them against taking part in "any provocative act that goes against the orders of the movement command, which calls for respecting all Lebanese people regardless of their sect."

It specifically cautioned against "joining motorcycle convoys or carrying out any provocative act and chanting sectarian slogans that violate the movement’s treaty and vision."

Any violators will risk being expelled from the movement, it added.

The provocations were discussed by parliament Speaker and Amal movement leader Nabih Berri and deputy Speaker Elias Bou Saab at Ain el-Tineh.

Bou Saab said these convoys "only serve the enemy (Israel). I hope they can be stopped because everyone in Lebanon took in the residents of the South and Dahieh" during Israel’s war on Hezbollah.

He described the convoys as "unacceptable", stressing the need for unity with residents of the South who bore the brunt of the Israeli war.

Unity cannot be achieved through such provocations, he remarked.

No to strife

Hezbollah’s opponents are in agreement in rejecting the rallies, declaring that they will not be dragged to strife and saying that the army will maintain calm.

Lebanese Forces sources said the convoys are clearly aimed at sending messages to the president and PM-designate.

"The state may have opened a new chapter, but one team is still acting arrogantly and refuses to acknowledge these changes. So, it has resorted to delivering messages that say that it represents de facto powers, and it will continue to act this way," they told Asharq Al-Awsat.

Another message aims to impose conditions on the formation of the new government and drafting of its ministerial statement to include the "army, people and resistance (Hezbollah)" term, it went on to say.

Regardless of the provocations, the sources stressed that the LF will not be lured to strife and it will continue to turn to the army to maintain stability, noting its statement and arrest of some of the motorists.

Kataeb Party MP Salim al-Sayegh condemned the convoys, saying: "We will not play Hezbollah’s game no matter the cost."

"We will not be dragged towards terrorist methods they are using against the residents of Beirut and Mount Lebanon," he said in televised remarks. "We are adhering to the state and laws and banking on the army."

"Confronting Israel does not take place in Beirut and Mount Lebanon. They cannot make up for their heavy losses (in the war) by striking ‘victories’ against their fellow countrymen," he added.

MP Michel Mouawad condemned Hezbollah, stressing: "We will always choose partnership while respecting the state, its sovereignty and constitution."

"No matter what, we will not yield to those who believe they can break the will of the Lebanese people through extortion, domineering methods and accusations of treason," he said on the X platform.

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 on Monday.

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."



Hamas Says Ready to Free All Hostages at Once in Gaza Truce Phase Two

The sun sets behind heavily damaged residential buildings in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on February 17, 2025, as people return to northern parts of Gaza during a current ceasefire deal in the war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
The sun sets behind heavily damaged residential buildings in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on February 17, 2025, as people return to northern parts of Gaza during a current ceasefire deal in the war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
TT
20

Hamas Says Ready to Free All Hostages at Once in Gaza Truce Phase Two

The sun sets behind heavily damaged residential buildings in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on February 17, 2025, as people return to northern parts of Gaza during a current ceasefire deal in the war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
The sun sets behind heavily damaged residential buildings in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on February 17, 2025, as people return to northern parts of Gaza during a current ceasefire deal in the war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)

Hamas signaled on Wednesday that it was willing to free all remaining hostages held in Gaza in a single swap during the next phase of an ongoing ceasefire.  

Israel and Hamas are currently in the process of implementing phase one of the fragile truce, which has held since taking effect on January 19 despite accusations of violations on both sides.  

Israel's foreign minister said on Tuesday that talks would begin "this week" on the second phase, which is expected to lay out a more permanent end to the war.

"We have informed the mediators that Hamas is ready to release all hostages in one batch during the second phase of the agreement, rather than in stages as in the current first phase," senior Hamas official Taher al-Nunu told AFP.

He did not clarify how many hostages were currently being held by Hamas or other armed groups.  

Nunu said this step was meant "to confirm our seriousness and complete readiness to move forward in resolving this issue, as well as to continue steps towards cementing the ceasefire and achieving a sustainable truce".  

Under the ceasefire's first phase, 19 Israeli hostages have been released so far in exchange for more than 1,100 Palestinian prisoners freed from Israeli jails in a series of Red Cross-mediated swaps.  

Wednesday's offer came after Israel and Hamas announced a deal for the return of all six remaining living hostages eligible for release under phase one in a single swap this weekend.  

Hamas also agreed on Tuesday to return the bodies of eight dead hostages in two groups this week and next.  

After the completion of the first phase, 58 hostages will remain in Gaza.  

The armed wing of Palestinian Islamic Jihad said on Wednesday that it would release the body of Israeli hostage Oded Lifshitz on Thursday. The group said Lifshitz was one of the hostages killed during Israeli strikes on Gaza.  

- 'Room to pressure Hamas' -  

Muhammad Shehada, of the European Council on Foreign Relations, said that after more than a year of devastating Israeli assault in Gaza, "Hamas wants to prevent the war resuming at any cost", albeit with some "red lines".  

"And one of those red lines is that they should continue to exist, basically, whereas (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu's position is that they should dismantle themselves," he said.  

Since the start of the war, Netanyahu has vowed to destroy Hamas's capacity to fight or govern, something the group has rejected.  

But the appearance that Washington is now in complete alignment with Netanyahu's government, as displayed by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio's visit this week, strengthened the Israeli premier's hand in negotiations, according to Michael Horowitz, an expert at the risk management consultancy Le Beck International.  

It gives Netanyahu "more room to pressure Hamas", Horowitz said, adding that US President Donald Trump "prefers that the agreement moves forward, but he's leaving the field open to Netanyahu... as long as the ceasefire is maintained".  

- 'Held onto hope' -

Among the bodies Hamas said it would hand over on Thursday are those of Shiri Bibas and her two young sons, Kfir and Ariel, who have become national symbols in Israel of the hostages' ordeal.  

The boys' father Yarden Bibas was taken hostage separately on October 7, 2023, and was released alive during an earlier hostage-prisoner swap.  

While Hamas said Shiri Bibas and her boys were killed in an Israeli air strike early in the war, Israel has never confirmed this, and many supporters remain unconvinced of their deaths, including members of the Bibas family.  

"I ask that no one eulogize my family just yet. We have held onto hope for 16 months, and we are not giving up now," the boys' aunt, Ofri Bibas, wrote on Facebook late Tuesday following Hamas's announcement.  

Israeli authorities have confirmed that the remains of four hostages are due to be returned on Thursday, although they have not officially named them.  

The International Committee of the Red Cross, which has acted as go-between in the exchanges, called for a respectful handover of the hostages' remains.  

"We once again call for all releases to be conducted in a private and dignified manner, including when they tragically involve the deceased," it said.  

Hamas and its allies took 251 people hostage during the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, of whom 70 remain in Gaza, including 35 the Israeli military says are dead.  

The attack resulted in the deaths of 1,211 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.  

Israel's retaliatory campaign has killed at least 48,297 people in Gaza, the majority of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory that the United Nations considers reliable.  

Since the war began, Israeli forces have detained hundreds of Gazans, some of whom have been released in previous rounds of hostage-prisoner exchanges.