Lebanese Minister of Justice: Hezbollah explosives threatened the country's security

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Lebanese Minister of Justice Adel Nassar revealed that the shipment of explosives seized by the security services, and whose ownership Hezbollah acknowledged, posed an imminent danger to the country's security, stressing that it could have been used to carry out attacks inside Lebanon.

Nassar said, in exclusive statements to Al-Arabiya channel, that judicial investigations alone will determine the actual purpose of the shipment, stressing the need not to anticipate its results.

He added that a large number of ministers supported referring the file to the competent judiciary, in light of the seriousness of the seized materials and the threat they pose to public security.

The case dates back to October 5, when the Lebanese security services seized a car loaded with hundreds of kilograms of explosive materials at the Dahr al-Baidar checkpoint, on the road linking the Bekaa region to the capital, Beirut.

According to Lebanese media reports, the shipment included highly explosive materials of the TNT and C4 types, and was heading to the southern suburbs of Beirut.

The Ministry of Justice’s request to refer the case to the Judicial Council also included explosives seized in the Al-Qasr area in Baalbek-Hermel Governorate on October 9, in addition to any other facts that the investigation proves to be linked to the seized materials.

On October 15, Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah announced that the shipment belonged to the party, explaining that the party informed the security services of its ownership after it was seized.

Fadlallah demanded the release of the detainees and the return of the confiscated materials, saying that they were intended to defend Lebanese territories against Israel. The party also rejected accusations that linked explosives to the possibility of assassinations or internal attacks, considering that raising these fears was part of a political campaign against it.

In his statements to Al Arabiya, Nassar stressed that transferring or storing any weapon outside the framework of the state is no longer linked to any concept of resistance.

He said that the Constitution and the law do not give any party justification to transfer or store weapons outside the institutions authorized to do so.

He added that transporting or storing explosives, whatever the pretext, constitutes a violation of public security, given the risks it may pose to the safety of citizens.

The Minister affirmed his confidence in the seriousness of the ongoing investigations, stressing that the judiciary is the authority authorized to determine responsibilities and reveal the purpose of transporting the shipment.

Nassar had requested that the case be referred to the “Judicial Council,” an exceptional judicial body that looks into crimes affecting state security, while stressing that this path does not cancel the existing judicial investigations.

In Thursday's session, the Lebanese Council of Ministers discussed the file, but did not resolve the issue of referral to the Judicial Council.

Information Minister Paul Morcos said that the government considered the case extremely dangerous and threatened the country's security and the safety of citizens, and decided to continue examining the referral request in light of the progress of the investigations.

The Council of Ministers also stressed the need to expedite investigations, without restrictions beyond what the law imposes.