Lebanon files charges against 2 Hezbollah members as UNIFIL prepares to withdraw

BEIRUT — A Lebanese military judge issued arrest warrants for two members of the Shiite paramilitary Hezbollah group on Thursday as part of an investigation into a truckload of explosives that was seized by authorities last month. What happened : Judge Ghada Abu Alwan issued formal charges for Ali al-Kurdi and Haitham Amhaz, who were already held in custody in the case, after questioning them in the presence of their lawyer, Lebanon’s state-run news agency reported on Thursday.

Abu Alwan also postponed a hearing for six other suspects who have not yet been taken into custody until Nov. 17, after their lawyer filed procedural objections. On Oct. 5, security forces intercepted a vehicle belonging to Hezbollah and carrying nearly 800 kilograms of explosives, including TNT and C4, at a checkpoint on the Dahr el-Baidar road linking Beirut to Damascus. Kurdi and Amhaz were arrested. Last Friday, a Lebanese military court charged them as well as 11 other Hezbollah-linked individuals with offenses including trafficking explosives, possessing weapons, undermining state security and forming illegal associations, according to local reports.

Eight of the suspects, including Kurdi and Amhaz, have been identified, while the remaining five are known only by their military aliases. Why it matters : The latest judicial move comes as Lebanese authorities expand their restrictions on the Iran-backed group. Days after Hezbollah began launching rockets toward Israel in early March in support of Iran, triggering the Israeli military offensive in Lebanon, the Lebanese government declared Hezbollah’s military and security activities illegal and urged the Lebanese military to move forward on plans to bring all weapons under state control.

For decades, Hezbollah had smuggled weapons into Lebanon from Iran via Syria , a route facilitated by ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. But since the fall of the Assad regime and the rebel takeover, the group has faced growing restrictions both in Lebanon and Syria. Lebanese security and military forces seized at least four shipments of explosives that entered Lebanon from Syria, including the truck confiscated in Dahr al-Baidar.

Hezbollah acknowledged that the truck belonged to the group, saying the explosives were intended for use against Israel and calling on Lebanese authorities to return the vehicle. Background : Lebanon has been under growing pressure by the United States to disarm Hezbollah. During a phone call with President Joseph Aoun in mid-October, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged the Lebanese government to “hold accountable all those who ordered, financed and directed the shipment” and stressed that “returning explosives to Hezbollah should be out of the question.”

On Thursday, the embassies of the US, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and Japan issued a joint statement reiterating their “strong support for the government of Lebanon in ensuring the state monopoly of arms and that the state alone should make decisions regarding war and peace.” The statement read, “We take note of the steps taken by the Lebanese authorities in the Dahr al-Baidar case and encourage a swift, independent judicial process, free from political interference, that ensures full accountability.”

Hezbollah has repeatedly refused to hand over its weapons under what it calls US and Israeli dictates. Parliament member for Hezbollah Ali Ammar condemned the embassies’ statement on Friday, saying it represented “lowness and insolence” and amounted to “blatant interference” in Lebanon’s internal affairs. He warned, “The Lebanese authorities’ continued disregard for these repeated interferences … is completely unacceptable and condemned.”

Know more : Fears of a return to full-scale war in Lebanon are compounded by a looming security vacuum in the south after the mandate of the UN peacekeeping forces expires at the end of December. UNIFIL, which has been patrolling the Lebanese side of the Israel-Lebanon border since its establishment in 1978, confirmed on Thursday that it would begin its gradual withdrawal from south Lebanon at the end of the year. Until then, peacekeepers from 45 countries will continue their daily operations across southern Lebanon, UNIFIL said in a statement, adding that the UN Security Council is currently examining options for the post-UNIFIL period.

UNIFIL’s mission has been amended several times over the years. In 2006, the UN bolstered its mandate under Resolution 1701. In August 2025, the UN Security Council extended the mission’s mandate until the end of this year, to be followed by a year-long drawdown and withdrawal. Lebanese officials have been calling for renewing the mandate of the mission or replacing it with another multinational force. France and Italy are working to come up with an alternative force to replace the UN peacekeepers in case the extension fails to pass.

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a close ally of Hezbollah, stressed on Friday that Resolution 1701 is the legal guarantee of Lebanon’s right to reclaim its full territorial sovereignty. In a meeting with EU Ambassador to Lebanon Sandra De Waele, he added that UNIFIL remains the sole operational mechanism to ensure the full implementation of the resolution.