Report: Lebanese army dismantles Hezbollah sites in south with Israeli intel help

The Lebanese army has dismantled large parts of Hezbollah’s infrastructure in southern Lebanon with the help of Israeli intelligence. This is according to a report published on Thursday morning in The Wall Street Journal (WSJ). Both Israeli and American officials expressed surprise at the extent of the progress, according to senior Israeli and U.S. sources who spoke with the news outlet.

According to the report, the key question now is whether the Lebanese state will be able to complete the disarmament of the south and extend these efforts to other regions as well. “In all of Lebanon’s territory, the state must hold a monopoly on weapons,” Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam told the WSJ. According to Salam, his government has completed around 80% of the mission to disarm armed militias in southern Lebanon.

Israeli intelligence, transferred via the United States, helped the Lebanese army locate and destroy Hezbollah weapons caches and military outposts, a senior Arab official told the WSJ. The Lebanese army reportedly announced that it would destroy some of the weapons seized from Hezbollah, while preserving and refurbishing others for its own use.

“We’re seeing areas where the Lebanese army is much more effective than we expected,” a senior IDF official was quoted as saying. “The IDF is pleased with this trend, and we hope it continues,” he added.

Lebanon is also promoting a multi-phase plan to disarm Palestinian armed groups operating primarily in densely populated refugee camps. According to the report, Lebanese security officials even took the rare step of arresting several members of a terror cell involved in launching rockets at Israel.

Earlier this month, Hamas representative in Lebanon, Ahmad Abdul Hadi, announced that the terror group is prepared to hand over four suspects involved in rocket fire toward Israel. He claimed the incident was “an individual act, not a centralized decision by Hamas,” and that the group only became aware of the launch after the suspects were arrested.

Two and a half weeks ago, the WSJ reported that the Lebanese government, with America's support, is working to curb Hezbollah’s activity at Beirut International Airport. According to Lebanese officials, dozens of airport workers suspected of ties to Hezbollah were dismissed. In addition, the Lebanese prime minister stated that smugglers had been arrested and that existing laws were once again being enforced.