Manny Ita –
Lebanon’s government on Monday banned the military and security activities of Hezbollah, marking an unprecedented move against the Iran-backed group as Israeli airstrikes pounded Beirut’s southern suburbs and multiple towns across the country.
The decision came hours after Hezbollah announced it had launched rockets and drones toward Israel early Monday in response to the killing of Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, in US-Israeli attacks. Israel responded with extensive bombardments, vowing to make the group pay a “heavy price”.
At least 52 people were killed and 154 wounded in the strikes, according to the Lebanese government. The Israeli military said it had “completed a broad wave of strikes on Hezbollah terrorist organisation targets in southern Lebanon,” adding that “as part of the strikes, more than 70 weapons storage facilities, launch sites, and missile launchers” were hit.
Following an emergency cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said: “The Lebanese state declares its absolute and unequivocal rejection of any military or security actions launched from Lebanese territory outside the framework of its legitimate institutions.
“This necessitates the immediate prohibition of all of Hezbollah’s security and military activities, considering them to be outside the law, and obliging it to hand over its weapons”.
Salam ordered the military and security agencies to take “immediate measures” to implement the cabinet decision and prevent “any military operation or the launching of missiles or drones from Lebanese territory”.
Justice Minister Adel Nassar said in a post on X that judicial authorities had tasked “security agencies with immediately arresting those who launched the rockets and their instigators”.
Mohammed Raad, head of Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc, condemned what he described as Beirut’s “rash decisions”, stating that “the Lebanese were expecting a decision rejecting the (Israeli) aggression”.
A source close to the government said two ministers from the Amal Movement and one from Hezbollah approved the cabinet’s decision.
Israeli strikes also hit buildings belonging to Al-Qard al-Hassan, a Hezbollah-linked financial institution sanctioned by Washington, in several parts of the country, particularly in the south. The attacks followed evacuation warnings issued by the Israeli military for towns in southern and eastern Lebanon and in Beirut’s southern suburbs.
The armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad said its commander in Lebanon, Adham Adnan al-Othman, was killed in the strikes.
Later on Monday, AFP journalists reported hearing loud blasts in Beirut, while the state-run National News Agency said “enemy warplanes launched new raids on the southern suburbs”.
The renewed bombardment triggered panic among residents, with heavy traffic reported in Beirut as civilians fled by car and motorcycle carrying belongings. “My baby daughter and I have been in the car for three and a half hours… for what? Why? For whom?” wrote user Ali Deeb on X.
The US Embassy in Lebanon renewed calls for its citizens to leave the country immediately. Lebanon’s education ministry announced the closure of schools, universities and educational institutions on Tuesday due to “security conditions”.
Lebanese authorities have repeatedly said they do not want the country drawn into a broader regional conflict following a massive US-Israeli attack on Iran. Beirut decided in August to gradually disarm Hezbollah after a year-long war with Israel that ended in a November 2024 ceasefire. However, Israel has continued to strike what it says are Hezbollah-linked targets, accusing the group of attempting to rearm.
The truce is monitored by a committee comprising Lebanon, Israel, the United States, France and UN peacekeepers.
Salam called on the United States and France, guarantors of the ceasefire, to “obtain a clear and final commitment from the Israeli side to cease all attacks on the entirety of Lebanese territory”. He also announced the government’s “full readiness to resume negotiations” with Israel “with civilian participation and under international auspices”.
