Lebanon charges 13 Hezbollah members over seized explosives

Lebanon’s Military Court has charged 13 Hezbollah members over a half-ton shipment of explosives intercepted in a vehicle heading toward Beirut, Lebanese officials announced over the weekend. Hezbollah’s demands for the release of its operatives and the return of the seized materials have been rejected.

Judge Claude Ghanem brought charges that include endangering state security, defying government decisions, belonging to a banned organization, and possessing firearms and explosives. Only two of the defendants remain in Lebanese custody. Lebanese media identified them as Ali Al Kurdi and Haitham Amhaz, the operatives arrested in the vehicle carrying the shipment.

The National News Agency reported that the defendants could receive prison terms of up to 10 years. Previous weapons cases involving Hezbollah members have resulted in lenient treatment by military courts. In March, the Military Court, presided over by Wassim Fayad, released four members on symbolic bail of $21 after six days in detention for possessing illegal weapons.

Authorities discovered the shipment at a checkpoint in Dahr al-Baidar in the Bekaa Valley. It contained 250 kilograms of TNT-type explosives and 250 kilograms of C4. The discovery raised concerns about a possible political assassination, although Hezbollah maintained that the explosives were intended for Israel.

Several Lebanese commentators drew attention to similarities between the seized materials and the types of explosives used in the truck bombing that killed former Lebanese prime minister Rafic Hariri. That attack killed 22 people and wounded hundreds. The Special Tribunal for Lebanon found Hezbollah members responsible.

Hezbollah parliamentary bloc MP Hussein Hajj Hassan challenged the indictment, describing the charges as “unfair and unjust,” according to the National News Agency. He alleged violations of the National Pact, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the United Nations Charter and Lebanese laws. He argued that the defendants were defending Lebanon’s sovereignty and people against Israel, rather than threatening state security.

His defense of the operatives comes despite recent polling indicating that most Lebanese support Hezbollah’s disarmament and want the elected government to control military decisions. The case also comes as Jerusalem seeks evidence that Beirut can contain the threat from Hezbollah as part of efforts toward a lasting ceasefire.

Separately, Foreign Minister Joe Rajji pushed back against Iranian influence during remarks on Saturday at the Manama Dialogue in Bahrain. According to the National News Agency, he said Lebanon would no longer permit its territory to threaten Arab countries or serve the defense interests of other states.

Rajji said Beirut must determine Lebanon’s foreign policy and that national security belongs exclusively to the state. He also said the country had suffered devastating consequences from armed organizations serving foreign interests and from national decisions being redirected toward regional agendas outside the interests of the Lebanese people.