Amid Increasing Concerns Of All-Out War With Israel, Opponents Of Hizbullah In Lebanon Protest: Enough, We Are Tired Of War

Amid growing concerns that an all-out war will break out between Hizbullah and Israel, voices in  Lebanon are increasingly calling for an end to the conflict, which as of this writing has been ongoing for over 300 days. Hizbullah launched the current round of hostilities with Israel following Hamas's October 7, 2023 invasion and massacres in southern Israel with the aim of diverting Israel's attention from the Gaza Strip and thereby easing the military pressure on the Palestinian factions fighting there.

In the past few weeks, and especially since Hizbullah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah's August 6 speech, in which he threatened a harsh response to Israel's recent assassination of Hizbullah military chief Fuad Shukr,[1] many Lebanese politicians, journalists, and social activists repeatedly warned that Hizbullah is dragging Lebanon into a war that serves the interests of Iran, which are contrary to the will and the interests of the country and people of Lebanon. These voices called on Hizbullah to compensate the Lebanese people for the damages it has caused them, and to implement UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which brought an end to the 2006 Second Lebanon War between Hizbullah and Israel. Billboards across Lebanon express disgust with the war and demand an end to it, and some voices have even called for Arab and international intervention to rescue Lebanon from the clutches of Iran and Hizbullah.

The opposition in Lebanon to Hizbullah's actions has in fact been apparent from the first days of the war in Gaza. In this context, there has been a social media campaign titled "Lebanon Does Not Want War," and some Lebanese have even praised the option of peace with Israel.[2]

This report reviews the criticism of Hizbullah inside Lebanon, as well as Lebanese calls to stop the fighting, in July and August 2024.

Hizbullah Opponents: Hizbullah Operates In The Service Of Iran To The Detriment Of The Lebanese Country And People

Hizbullah's opponents claim that the organization and its patron, Iran, are sacrificing Lebanon and the Lebanese to safeguard the Iranian regime. They also assert that Hizbullah started the war against Israel at Iran's behest without the agreement of the Lebanese people, and that the war has not achieved its declared goals, which included a reduction of the Israeli military pressure on the Gaza Strip. Instead, the war has only caused heavy losses and serious damage to Lebanon, they say, and call on the organization to assume responsibility and pay for the damages it has caused.

Hizbullah Prioritizes Iran's Interests Over Lebanon's And Is Leading It Towards Disaster

In an August 10, 2024 column in the Kuwaiti daily Al-Rai, Lebanese journalist Khairallah Khairallah wrote: "In Lebanon there is only one decision[maker] – Iran – which doesn't care what happens to Lebanon or to the Lebanese people. It is only interested in safeguarding its own regime, even if this has to be done using a card known as Lebanon, Syria, Iraq or Yemen… The decision about war or peace in Lebanon is in the hands of Iran… It is frightening that Iran, which is responsible for Hizbullah's decision to open the front in southern [Lebanon], is unable to impose terms that would limit the Israeli barbarism, which has essentially wiped out the Gaza Strip. Even more frightening is the Lebanese political vacuum, which Hizbullah fills while the government does not [even] dare to say that it is this organization that has always refused to implement Resolution 1701 […] which was the key to safeguarding the country…"[3]

On August 11, Georges Hayek, a member of the Central Council of the Lebanese Forces Party,  shared on his X account a graphic from the "Lebanon Doesn't Want War" campaign showing a landscape in flames with the caption: "[There will be] one million displaced [Lebanese] if the war in southern Lebanon spreads." Hayek commented: "The greatest proof that Hizbullah does not take into account the interests of Lebanon and its people is that it takes no interest in the fate of the one million people who will be displaced if the war in the south expands. It gives priority to the interests of Iran and of a small circle within [Hizbullah itself]. It is leading Lebanon toward a real disaster."[4]

On August 5, Lebanese activist Raymond Hakim shared another graphic from the "Lebanon Doesn't Want War" campaign, captioned: "You have destroyed our economy," and commented: "#Lebanon_Doesn't_Want_War - [Hizbullah] has brought the Lebanese people into wars against advanced powers, even though it knows that Lebanon cannot prevail against them and will be destroyed. It is the money that it receives from Iran that instructed it to do so. #Implement_The_International_Resolutions."[5]

Hizbullah Causes Only Suffering, Poverty, And Starvation

Another assertion made by Hizbullah's opponents is that the organization made a serious miscalculation when it decided to join the fighting against Israel, for not only did it fail to achieve its aim of distracting Israel from the Gaza Strip and waging a war of attrition against it, but also caused the deaths of many Lebanese, while devastating the Lebanese economy.

Lebanese MP Samy Gemayel, the chairman of the Kataeb (Phalanges) Party, said in an early-August interview with Sky News Arabia that Hizbullah does not have the right to spill Lebanese blood, that its stated aims for the war have not been achieved, and that it has failed to relieve the pressure from Gaza, while bringing nothing but destruction to South Lebanon.[6]

On August 8 Rita Bouloss, a member of the Kataeb Party's political bureau, shared on her X account a report describing the destruction that Hizbullah has wrought in Lebanon on the pretext of coming to the aid of the Gaza Strip, and commented: "Nothing but destruction, economic deterioration, and the displacement of thousands from their homes in South Lebanon. Lebanese  who live abroad and came to visit Lebanon for the summer have left, the harvest season has been disrupted, and [everyone is] anxious about the future of the Lebanese people. What has Hizbullah gained from the war of 'distracting [Israel] and assisting [Gaza]?!' #Lebanon_Doesn't_Want_War."[7]

Lebanese activist Raymond Hakim criticized Hizbullah and the Palestinian militias for bringing nothing but devastation and destruction upon their people in their wars against Israel. On August 10, he shared on his X account a cartoon titled "Militia Leaders Repeat the Same Mistakes," which depicts nests of eggs labeled "2014 Gaza War," "2006 [Second] Lebanon War," "2020 Gaza War," and "2024 Gaza War," all of which hatch into chicks labeled "Starvation," "Destruction," "Poverty," and "Displacement." Hakim commented: "The defective hen Iran and [its] cursed chicks."[8]

Hizbullah Should Pay For The Damages Of The War

Hizbullah opponents called on the group to assume responsibility for the damages caused by the war and to compensate the Lebanese people. Georges Hayek, of the Lebanese Forces Party, wrote on his X account on August 7, 2024: "Hizbullah should know that it is responsible for every drop of blood that will be spilt in Lebanon because of the Israeli attacks it is provoking, and that it bears full responsibility for the economic and financial situation and for the collapse that will ensue as the result of its wars, in which Lebanon has no interest."[9]

On August 11, Lebanese journalist and writer Nancy Lakiss shared on her X account a graphic from the "Lebanon Doesn't Want War" campaign showing displaced Lebanese with the caption "If the war continues, who will provide for the displaced people?" She commented that Hizbullah must "assume responsibility and provide for the displaced people, because the crisis that it has brought upon them is a test of its commitment to bear responsibility for the people."[10]

Calls In Lebanon: No To War; Hizbullah Must Be Forced To Implement UN Security Council Resolution 1701

In light of the heavy damages and losses suffered by Lebanon and its people as a result of Hizbullah's conduct, opponents of the group have called to stop the fighting and implement UN Security Council Resolution 1701. They also demanded international intervention to rescue Lebanon from the control of Hizbullah and Iran.

Article In Al-Nahar Daily: No To War; The Lebanese Have Had Enough Of These Destructive, Deadly Efforts

Amid the fear of an Israeli retaliation for the July 27, 2024 Majdal Shams massacre, in which 12 Druze children were killed during a soccer game by a Hizbullah rocket attack on northern Israel, the Lebanese daily Al-Nahar devoted the front page of its July 30 issue to a short article titled "No to War." The article said: "[We say] no to war in a steady voice that does not waver, and with no fear, because the future of our generations depends on stability, development, and service for the sake of the people, without pushing our country into the arena of war. We must all stand united for a safe, dignified and free future. No to war, because war is opposed to humanity even if at times it is forced upon us. No to war because human [life] is more precious than anything. The Lebanese and the Arabs are sick of drinking from the cups of the destructive, deadly efforts..."[11]

Al-Nahar journalist reading a copy of the July 30 issue featuring the front-page article titled "No To War" (Annahar.com, July 30, 2024)

Billboards Throughout Lebanon: "Enough, We Are Tired"

Opposition to the war has been voiced not only on social media and on television channels, but also on the streets of Lebanon. As part of the "Lebanon Does Not Want War" campaign, which has been ongoing on social media since the beginning of the current conflict with Israel, large billboards have been posted throughout Lebanon bearing the text: "Enough, we are tired." The billboards show photos of the destruction and damages caused to Lebanon as a result of the war. It should be noted that it is yet unclear who is behind the social media campaign and the billboards.[12]

Calls To Implement UN Security Council Resolution 1701

Hizbullah opponents have asserted that one of the ways to protect Lebanon from all-out war with Israel is to implement UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which called for a ceasefire between Israel and Hizbullah in the 2006 Second Lebanon War and for the deployment of UNIFIL forces in South Lebanon, and banned any Hizbullah presence south of the Litani River. In a meeting with the Mufti of Lebanon, Sheikh Abdullatif Darian, National Dialogue Party member Fuad Mahzoumi called "to take serious measures to stop the war in the south and to work with the international community to achieve this goal, particularly since the government has no practical plans to defend the people in the event of war… The most important thing for all sides to implement all the clauses of Resolution 1701… This war will not take us anywhere, it will only cause great economic and social harm, destruction, refugees, emigration and innocent victims…"[13]

Posting on his X account, Lebanese Forces Party member Georges Hayek addressed the wave of emigration from Lebanon: "…Only neutrality [towards Israel] and implementation of the international resolution can defend Lebanon and stop the flow of emigrants."[14]

Lebanese journalist Tony Bouloss wrote: "The international [UN Security Council] Resolution 1701 will be implemented sooner or later. Is it not preferable to implement it immediately instead of sparking a war of 'distraction' that will cost the Lebanese people hundreds of victims and billions of dollars? The truth exposed by the 'war' is that the 'equations'[15] sold by Hizbullah over the past years are fictitious. Only the government can defend the nation and its sovereignty.  "#Lebanon_Does_Not_Want_War." [16]

End The Control Of Hizbullah And Iran Over The Lebanese State

In addition to calls for the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, there have been calls to end Hizbullah's and Iran's control of Lebanon. Senior Lebanese Forces party official Charles Jabour said in an interview with the Lebanese Waqe'a news portal that foreign intervention is needed to handle this issue, saying: "We need the Arab countries and the United States to reassess Iran's role, which is undermining our stability."[17]

Lebanese MP Ashraf Rifi even called "to liberate the Lebanese state, which has fallen into the hands of Iran, even by force."[18]