Hezbollah acknowledged on Thursday that the shipment of explosives seized by Lebanese authorities earlier in the week belonged to it, as judicial and security investigations continue to establish the circumstances of its transport and identify everyone linked to it. Hassan Fadlallah, an MP from the group, said the seized shipment was owned by Hezbollah.
Lebanese Army seizes lorry carrying explosives
The Lebanese Army had announced the seizure of a lorry carrying hundreds of kilogrammes of explosives, including C4 and TNT, in the Dahr al-Baydar area while it was being transported from the Bekaa towards Greater Beirut. The army detained the lorry drivers before referring them to the relevant authorities for further investigation.
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said the authorities would continue their investigation until all those involved had been identified and the purposes behind transporting the shipment had been uncovered. He stressed that the case would be handled according to the principle of “no leniency or turning a blind eye, but truth and accountability”. Salam noted that C4 had been used in a number of political assassinations in Lebanon over past decades.
He said the government would deal firmly with any weapon held outside the framework of the legitimate authorities, whether the matter involved its possession, transport or use. Exclusive sources said the Lebanese government was determined to complete the investigation, uncover the circumstances surrounding the transport of the materials and identify those responsible, including people who have not yet been detained.
They added that the investigation aimed to determine the source and destination of the explosives and the purpose of transporting them, and that a hearing with the detainees had been scheduled for Tuesday as part of the judicial proceedings in the case. According to the sources, Hezbollah is circulating information saying that the seized materials were intended to manufacture explosive devices and explosive drones for use against Israeli forces.
Military investigation tracks shipment’s source
The government, meanwhile, remains committed to continuing the investigation to verify this information and identify the parties linked to the shipment. In the context of the investigation, the Lebanese newspaper Al-Diyar reported that Government Commissioner to the Military Court, Judge Claude Ghanem, had begun investigating the case, which concerns the seizure of more than half a tonne of explosives.
It added that the seized materials had been placed in the custody of the Lebanese Military Police on Ghanem’s instructions. The newspaper reported that the lorry drivers admitted belonging to Hezbollah and said that someone had handed them the explosives in Baalbek to transport them to Beirut’s southern suburbs and deliver them to a person known as “Dhu al-Fiqar”.
The investigation is expected to focus on the types and quantities of materials and their transport route, as well as identifying those linked to the case and the shipment’s final destination.
