Screenshot of anti-Hezbollah message posted on LBCI channel's X account. (Credit: X/@LBCI_NEWS)
BEIRUT — Lebanon's LBCI television channel claimed its X account was hacked earlier on Monday, with whoever did so posting a message that said: "Sayyed Hassan ... you are dragging the South and the country towards destruction."
The message, addressed to the Secretary General of Hezbollah, appeared shortly after midday on the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation International's X page, alongside a video that appears to be a collage of different clips from several of Nasrallah's speeches, edited together so that he is heard saying: “Consider these words: The country could be dragged into chaos, a security failure. We are worried for the country.”
Screenshot of anti-Hezbollah message posted on LBCI channel's X account. (Credit: X/@LBCI_NEWS)
It's possible that the hacking was planned for Monday to align with Nasrallah's speech later in the afternoon. The party's leader spoke during a ceremony paying tribute to an Iranian Guard commander with close ties to Hezbollah, who was killed in the Israeli attack on the Iranian embassy in Damascus a week prior.
Three months ago the Beirut International Airport was also hacked. An anti-Hezbollah message replaced flight information on the display screens and the baggage carousels malfunctioned.
"Hezbollah is responsible for exploiting the country and committing crimes against the people of southern Lebanon. Sayyed Hassan, stop this farce, you're dragging the South and the whole country towards destruction," said the message on LBCI's account.
A message to Iran
A message of hostility toward Iran, Hezbollah's regional sponsor, then appeared across the video: "Security in Lebanon is not linked to that of Iran, and the road to Jerusalem does not pass through southern Lebanon or Beirut. To Iran we say: He who suffers blows is not like he who counts them. To Hassan Nasrallah we say: Who benefits from murder, destruction and displacement? Pain, terror and anxiety serve the interests of Iran, not the Lebanese."
An hour later, LBCI announced that its X account had been hacked. Local media have speculated that the hackers could be the affiliated with if not identical to those who hacked the airport screens in early January.
The Ministry of Social Affairs' website was also hacked in January, following an failed attempt to hack the Lebanese Parliament's page.