Teargas fumes erupt during clashes between supporters of Hezbollah and the Lebanese Army amidst a rally to block the road to Beirut International Airport over a decision to bar two Iranian flights from landing there, in Beirut.AFP
The Lebanese group said in a statement that it "demands that the government reverse its decision to ban Iranian planes from landing at Beirut airport and take serious measures to prevent the Israeli enemy from imposing its dictates and violating national sovereignty.".
Hezbollah supporters had blocked Beirut's airport road to protest Lebanon’s decision to revoke permission for two Iranian flights to land.
Lebanese authorities said Saturday that more than 25 people have been arrested after protesters attacked a convoy transporting UN peacekeepers to Beirut's airport a day earlier, injuring a top commander.
Lebanon’s civil aviation agency blocked the flights due to “additional security measures.” It was rescheduling some flights until 18 February — the same day as the deadline for Israel and Hezbollah to fully implement their ceasefire, including a full withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon.
"The sit-in organized by Hezbollah yesterday, in condemnation of the blatant Israeli interference in Lebanese affairs and the violation of national sovereignty, was a peaceful movement and a civilized expression of a popular stance rejecting unjustified submission to external dictates," Hezbollah said in a statement.
"However, the protesters were surprised when some members of the Lebanese army fired tear gas canisters at them—an unacceptable act that constitutes an unjustified assault on peaceful citizens," it added.
Hezbollah considered the incident as a suspicious attempt to drag the army into a confrontation with its own people.
It called on the Lebanese army to open an urgent investigation into this condemned attack and to take appropriate measures to preserve the role of the military institution in protecting stability and civil peace.
Hezbollah also condemned the attack targeting the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in the vicinity of Beirut International Airport. It reaffirmed its firm rejection of any attack on UNIFIL and any harm to public and private property.
US Warning
A Lebanese source told AFP on Saturday that Lebanon had denied permission for Iranian flights to land twice this week after the United States warned Israel might strike the airport.
The first incident occurred on Thursday when Lebanese authorities warned Iran that a Beirut-bound flight should not take off.
"Through the Americans, Israel informed the Lebanese state that it would target the airport if the Iranian plane landed in Lebanon," the source said.
"The American side told the Lebanese side that Israel was serious about its threat," the source added.
The source added that Lebanon's public works and transport ministry then refused clearance for the flight after consulting the prime minister and president.
The source said the message was passed on before the flight took off.
Another flight was also barred from taking off from Iran on Friday, prompting protests in Lebanon from Hezbollah supporters, who blocked the road to the airport.
"The security of Beirut airport takes precedence over any other consideration," Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said Saturday.
"And the safety of travellers as well as the safety of Lebanese citizens are elements on which we will not compromise."
The Israeli military claims that Iran's Quds Force and Hezbollah were using civilian flights to and from the airport to smuggle money to be used to re-arm Hezbollah.
Concerns of possible occupation
Israeli forces had been due to pull out next week from southern Lebanon. However, media outlets reported that Israel is seeking another extension of the deadline for the withdrawal of its troops from Lebanon.
Israel wants its military to stay in five positions there for another 10 days, till 28 February, a Western diplomat told BBC. This request is likely to raise new concerns in a country with a history of rejecting Israeli occupation.
On Saturday, the Israeli military said it killed Abbas Ahmed Hamoud, the senior leader from Hezbollah’s aerial unit, in an air strike in south Lebanon.
An Israeli strike on a vehicle in south Lebanon killed at least two people on Saturday, Lebanese state media reported, amid ongoing Israeli violations of the ceasefire in Lebanon.
The National News Agency said the attack in the Iqlim al-Tuffah area killed two people and wounded four.
The ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon came into effect on 27 November.
Under the deal, Lebanon’s military was to deploy in the south alongside United Nations peacekeepers as the Israeli army withdrew over a 60-day period, and Hezbollah was also to vacate its positions near the border during that timeframe.
The deadline was later extended until 18 February after Israel said its soldiers would remain in the region, claiming that the ceasefire agreement was yet to be fully enforced by the Lebanese state.
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