Between Hezbollah and the state, Yassine Jaber tries to find balance
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L'Orient-Le Jour
18 hours ago
- L'Orient-Le Jour
The mayor of a town on the southern Lebanese border comes under Israeli fire
The Israeli army opened fire toward the mayor of Mari, Salmane Abou al-Alaa, while he was inspecting the border area of Abbasieh, reports our correspondent in southern Lebanon, Muntasser Abdallah. 'During a tour I was conducting with members of the Southern Council to inspect the border village of Abbasieh, the Israelis deliberately fired near us, forcing us to halt our tour and leave the area,' the elected official told our publication. These shootings come as the Israeli army continues to violate the truce concluded nearly nine months ago between Israel and Hezbollah. In this context, an Israeli drone dropped a sonic bomb on the town of Kfar Kila in the Marjayoun district and on the village of Ramieh in the Bint Jbeil district on Saturday. Another Israeli drone targeted an excavator on the outskirts of Aitaroun, in the Bint Jbeil district, near the town of Blida. Katz confronts Aoun On another note, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz sent 'a direct message' to Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Friday. 'We consider you, along with the Lebanese government, directly responsible for maintaining Lebanon's sovereignty and implementing the cease-fire agreement. We will not return to the situation that prevailed before Oct. 7 and will continue to act forcefully against any violation,' he emphasized, shortly after the Israeli army carried out strikes in southern Lebanon. Meanwhile, the commander-in-chief of the Lebanese Army, General Rodolphe Haykal, inspected on Friday the site of last Saturday's explosion at a weapons depot in the Sour district, which had killed six soldiers. 'The army has no option but to continue fulfilling its duty in the face of repeated aggressions by the Israeli enemy, as safeguarding the homeland is a sacred mission for which sacrifices are required,' he stressed. Recently, the Lebanese authorities tasked the Lebanese Army with developing a plan to disarm Hezbollah, a decision strongly contested by the party.
L'Orient-Le Jour
a day ago
- L'Orient-Le Jour
The law on judicial independence is ‘a positive step' but ‘enough,' according to HRW
Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a report published on Aug. 15, 2025, that the bill on judicial independence, adopted by the Lebanese Parliament on July 31, is 'a positive step' but 'does not sufficiently guarantee judicial independence.' The organization noted that 'the new law includes some advances in judicial independence, notably greater autonomy and a larger role for judges in electing their peers.' However, the report continues, 'it allows the government-appointed attorney general to order other prosecutors to halt ongoing judicial proceedings and limits the highest judicial body in Lebanon [the Supreme Judicial Council] in overcoming government deadlock and obstruction in judicial appointments.' Ramzi Kaiss, an HRW researcher in Lebanon, said that 'the Lebanese Parliament has made progress but has not truly seized the opportunity to protect the judiciary from political interference.' The report also notes that, although the bill was signed by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berry and sent to Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and President Joseph Aoun, the parliament and government should amend the text. It has been widely criticized by civil rights groups, including the Coalition for Judicial Independence in Lebanon and Legal Agenda, for not taking their recommendations into account and for amendments made during its passage through the Administration and Justice Committee. 'The draft presented in 2018 followed very high standards,' said Nizar Saghiyé, executive director of Legal Agenda, cited in the report. He acknowledged progress on transparency in judicial elections and freedom-of-expression guarantees but said there is still a long way to go. The new law indeed expands judges' in the process of electing their peers and strengthens self-governance in appointments, disciplinary measures, and the transfer of cases among magistrates. It also tasks the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) with developing internal judicial regulations and a judicial code of conduct. Article 53 states that 'judges are independent in the exercise of their functions' and 'cannot be transferred, evaluated, sanctioned, or suspended from their judicial duties, except in cases provided by law.' Judges remain irremovable for four years unless subject to disciplinary proceedings, and they cannot remain in the same position for more than five years. However, whereas the original version stipulated that the vast majority of SJC members should be appointed by their peers, following the recommendations of the Venice Commission (the Council of Europe's advisory body on constitutional matters), the bill was amended to increase the number of judges appointed by the government from three to four out of eight. What worries civil society most is that the government-appointed public prosecutor is still authorized by law to instruct other prosecutors to take legal measures of their choosing, giving them powers that remain excessive, according to the report. Civil society also highlighted significant violations in the legal process of adopting the text. These included 'last-minute amendments that members of Parliament could not examine before the vote, as well as a random tallying process that led some journalists and MPs to conclude that the bill had not received a majority of votes,' the report notes. 'We did not discuss the law, and the text was not put to a vote. They called certain names [of parliamentarians], then the law was approved,' said MP Halimé Kaakour (protesting) in a video posted on social media, a statement cited by HRW. Finally, the report raised the need for the government to ensure that the military prosecutor's office no longer handles civilian cases, contrary to its internal regulations. The appearance of civilians before this 'special' body had become commonplace in recent years, in what the organization described as attempts at 'intimidation.' The HRW report also notes that the newly adopted law is subject to review by the Constitutional Council and should be amended. 'The adoption of this law represents a first step in judicial reform, but the struggle will not be over until Lebanese leaders permanently remove the legal provisions used to obstruct and paralyze the work of the judiciary,' concluded Ramzi Kaiss.
L'Orient-Le Jour
a day ago
- L'Orient-Le Jour
New wave of condemnations after Qassem's speech
Reactions condemning the speech of the Hezbollah leader, who on Friday threatened confrontation if disarmament were imposed on his group, continued for the second consecutive day. These remarks were, however, supported by Iran's ambassador to Beirut, Mojtaba Amani, who said, 'American pressure will not break Lebanon.' The leader of the Lebanese Forces (LF), Samir Geagea, on Saturday called the statements of Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem 'unacceptable.' Kassem had declared on Friday that his organization was ready for confrontation, especially after the government tasked the Lebanese Army with drafting a plan to disarm it. 'The speech delivered yesterday by Sheikh Naim Kassem is unacceptable in every respect, as it constitutes a direct threat, first and foremost, to the Lebanese government, then to the parliamentary majority that has placed its trust in this government, and finally to all of Lebanon's constitutional institutions, including the presidency of the Republic and the presidency of the Council of Ministers,' Geagea said in a statement. 'It is also a direct threat to all free Lebanese,' he added. 'Supporting constitutional institutions' 'If Sheikh Naïm assumes that there are no longer any free Lebanese in Lebanon, he is gravely mistaken. If he assumes that he can thereby impose his authority, which does not exist, on these free Lebanese, he is also gravely mistaken,' added the LF leader, of the Christian sovereignist party opposed to Hezbollah's arsenal. In a barely veiled threat directed at Hezbollah's secretary-general, Geagea also promised to 'redouble efforts to support constitutional institutions' and to do everything possible 'to prevent anyone from undermining support for constitutional institutions again,' considering that the current phase is 'foundational' for Lebanon. 'These institutions, represented by the heads of state and government, are striving, with all their patriotism, energy, and strength, to restore Lebanon to itself, to reestablish order in the state, to bring Lebanon's friends back to its side, and also to bring the international community back with it,' he concluded. After more than a year of war between Israel and Hezbollah, the party, which has lost much of its leadership—including its chief Hassan Nasrallah, eliminated by the Israeli army on Sep. 27, 2024— continues to refuse to hand over its arsenal to the Lebanese Army, despite pressure from authorities and the international community. Beirut MP Ibrahim Mneimneh (opposition) said that Hezbollah 'should clearly declare that it is handing over its weapons and limit discussion on this matter to the Council of Ministers.' 'But Hezbollah continues to break its promises and move in a vicious circle,' he added in a radio interview. He also noted: 'The main problem still lies in the lack of trust in a state that is trying to recover. Therefore, Hezbollah should no longer make all Lebanese bear the burden of its crisis.' 'Threatening official authorities' Metn MP Elias Hankache, a member of the parliamentary group of the Kataeb Party, said, 'We cannot let pass an opportunity to build a country worthy of our ambitions in the face of a regional Iranian agenda.' In an interview with the Lebanese channel al-Jadeed, he accused Naim Qassem of 'threatening official authorities in Lebanon, the entire country, and all Lebanese,' noting that this escalation coincided with the visit of Iranian official Ali Larijani to Beirut. Meanwhile, MP Hadi Abou el-Hosn of the Democratic Gathering bloc (aligned with Jumblatt) said Qassem's speech is 'condemnable and unacceptable,' questioning why he used language from a bygone era, referring to the civil war invoked by the Hezbollah chief. 'This escalatory speech, which traps us in the Israeli game, is in total contradiction with Hezbollah's participation in the government, in which we are all integrated and whose ministerial declaration we have all approved,' he said in a statement. 'American pressure will not break Lebanon' Iran's ambassador to Beirut, Mojtaba Amani, stated that 'American pressure will not break Lebanon and its resistance.' In an interview with Al-Alam, reported by various Lebanese media, the diplomat said that his 'country resists pressures, government and people united, and wishes the same for Lebanon.' 'Iran supports Lebanon and its people without distinction between different communities, and its support for Lebanon is not a slogan but a concrete reality,' he added. Amani also said, 'If houses belonging to Christians, Druze, or other communities are destroyed, Iran is ready to help them, as it does for the oppressed people of Gaza.' Meanwhile, Hezbollah's deputy head of the political council, Mahmoud Comati, said on Saturday that Hezbollah is not 'in an internal Lebanese confrontation.' Naïm Kassem 'did not threaten, but said that we are ready, if cornered, to wage a Battle of Karbala,' referring to the battle in which Imam Hussein and his men were killed in 680 AD.
