Hezbollah faces a backlash in Lebanon as the scope of the Israeli invasion expands

As the Israeli invasion of Lebanon intensifies and wreaks further devastation on the Mediterranean nation, anger among Lebanese toward Israel has, not surprisingly, reached an all-time high.

But dissatisfaction with its enemy Hezbollah is also growing.

With 1,400 Lebanese dead and more than a million displaced across the country – a fifth of the country’s population – Hezbollah critics and supporters alike are expressing frustration at what many see as the group’s miscalculations.

“This is a war between Iran and Israel on Lebanese soil,” said Sami Gemayel, a member of parliament for the Phalange Party, Hezbollah’s old rival.

“Unfortunately, today we are all stuck,” Gemayel said. “Hezbollah continues its war. It is not willing to stop, and is taking the entire country to hell with it.”

Family members of those killed in the Israeli attacks also blame Hezbollah – an Iranian-backed militant group and one of Lebanon’s largest political parties – for lacking adequate plans to evacuate, shelter or rescue them.

Mohammed, 40, is slowly making his way through the rubble of the six-story building in the Hezbollah-dominated suburb of Beirut where his brother lives, wondering when rescue workers will finally arrive. . He said that the bodies of his brother, sister-in-law, and nephew were lying among the rubble.

Hezbollah officials told him he would have to wait because the crews were already overburdened by the “situation.” But he indicated that workers were actively recovering the bodies of Hezbollah members in a destroyed building nearby.

“We appreciate their sacrifices,” the man said. “But they chose this. Don’t tell me this is ‘the way it is’ when you get it.” [Hezbollah members’ bodies] I go out and leave my family in ruins. Why are my brother and his family waiting to be buried? I know I will never find their bodies. But give me some pieces of meat so I can put them in a bag and go bury them.”

Many blame Hezbollah for starting the recent conflict with Israel.

One day after Palestinian Hamas militants attacked southern Israel and ignited the war between Israel and Hamas last October, Hezbollah joined the fighting by launching a barrage of rockets and missiles at northern Israel. Hezbollah said it seeks to help Hamas and force Israel to fight on two fronts.

About 60,000 people were displaced from northern Israel and 90,000 people from southern Lebanon during a year of mutual attacks on the border.

The clear assumption among Hezbollah leaders was that Israel’s fatigue with its Gaza campaign meant it had little appetite for an all-out war, especially against a well-armed opponent like Hezbollah. This assumption turned out to be astonishingly wrong.

Late last month, Israel launched thousands of airstrikes across Lebanon, hitting Hezbollah-controlled areas in the south, east and the capital, Beirut, even as its forces began what the Israeli military described as a “limited incursion.”

But Israeli evacuation orders continue to expand to include new areas every few days, raising the specter of nearly a third of the country being under occupation.

Two Israeli airstrikes hit central Beirut on Thursday, killing at least 22 people and wounding 92 others, authorities said.

Israeli media said that the target was a Hezbollah operative, Wafiq Safa, whom the United States has imposed sanctions on since 2019.

Thursday’s attack was the third to strike the heart of the capital, and the bloodiest so far in the year-long conflict. Chaos reigned in the aftermath, as residents fled into the streets while ambulances and fire trucks struggled to navigate the neighborhood’s narrow streets.

Mark Daou, a member of parliament who belongs to a bloc not allied with Hezbollah, said nationalist and anti-Israel fervor is at the forefront of most Lebanese’s concerns.

He said: “All Lebanese want to stand firm against Israel.” “If there is an occupation, any Lebanese, regardless of their sect, has the duty to fight and resist.”

But he added that such sentiments do not absolve Hezbollah of responsibility for pushing Lebanon into war and linking its fate to the situation in Gaza – all at Iran’s request.

“Hezbollah looks more and more like a party member fully aligned with Iran, as opposed to a locally rooted Lebanese party,” Daou said.

Much of the anger toward Hezbollah stems from the speed with which the group’s leadership appears to be eliminated, as Israel has repeatedly demonstrated its espionage prowess by hunting down the group’s top officials. This includes leader Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed in a massive airstrike last month.

Men read alerts on their mobile phones advising residents of southern Lebanon not to return to their homes until further notice due to Israeli military operations against Hezbollah facilities on Wednesday.

(Hussein Al-Mulla/Associated Press)

“It is now clear that none of this was calculated,” said Tony Shukr, a Beirut-based artist and architect who is not a supporter of Hezbollah. “The basis for their entry into the war is that they are ready and have more than 100,000 missiles.”

“Where are they then?” he asked. “If you have something, show it.”

Criticism extended to Iran, Hezbollah’s main sponsor, with suspicions growing among die-hard Hezbollah supporters that the lack of a meaningful response to Nasrallah’s killing was evidence that Tehran had sold out the group.

“This could not have happened without the betrayal,” said Ali, a Hezbollah supporter who lived in a Hezbollah-controlled area until his home was destroyed in an airstrike targeting what the Israeli military said was a weapons cache. He asked to be identified by his first name only. “Iran stabbed us in the back. It’s clear.”

Dissatisfaction with the level of Iranian support is so widespread that Hezbollah’s deputy leader, Naim Qassem, addressed the issue in a televised speech on Tuesday.

Iran decides how to support and how to give, and it has given [a lot] Over the years,” he added, adding that “the battle is not the battle of Iran and Iran’s influence in the region… but rather the battle to liberate Palestine.”

With Israel focusing its campaign primarily on areas loyal to Hezbollah, most of the displaced were from Lebanon’s Shiite community. They fled north with little that they could cram into or on top of their cars. Those who couldn’t find a place with family or hastily prepared shelters are now camping out in public squares, parks and even on sidewalks along Beirut’s famous beach promenade.

The longer they stay, the more friction there will be, said Mustafa Alloush, a Sunni MP from the northern city of Tripoli, where tens of thousands of displaced people have found refuge.

“So far everyone is behaving well,” Alloush said. Some local residents are wary of receiving the displaced for fear of harboring a Hezbollah member without their knowledge and provoking Israeli fire, but others have opened their homes without any concern for the sect.

“But if the matter goes beyond a certain point, a social explosion could occur,” Alloush warned.

A woman at a march this week in Rio de Janeiro carried a sign in Portuguese that read, “Stop bombings in Lebanon.”

(Bruna Prado/Associated Press)

Israel appears to be counting on disappointment in Hezbollah. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a televised speech, called on the Lebanese people on Tuesday to “stand up” and take back their country from the group, warning them to “save Lebanon before it falls into the abyss of a long war that would lead to a long-term war.” It leads to destruction and suffering as we see in Gaza.”

Analysts say that Israel has a larger strategy aimed at turning the Lebanese against Hezbollah.

“The reason they don’t bomb others [non-Shiite] The reason behind this is that they want to create an inhospitable environment for Hezbollah, said Michael Young, an analyst at the Beirut-based Carnegie Middle East Center. “This indicates a plan that is much more ambitious than just the issue of securing the border.”

Gemayel, the Phalange Party lawmaker, fears such a scenario could lead to a repeat of the sectarian bloodshed that swept Lebanon during the 15-year civil war that ended in 1990.

“As long as there is hope that these people can return home, we can handle it,” he said. But once Israel decides to stay, that’s another story. Then Lebanon will collapse.”