
Packages unloaded from a plane on the tarmac of Beirut international airport, June 24, 2024. (Credit: Mohammad Yassine/L'Orient-Le Jour)
BEIRUT — A report by British media outlet The Telegraph, claiming Hezbollah has been storing Iranian weapons in Beirut’s airport, sparked uproar in Lebanon. Social media users criticized the journalistic biases of the report, while others feared it could be used by Israel to justify bombing the airport.
Citing Beirut international airport "whistleblowers," the Telegraph reported on Sunday that Hezbollah has been storing "huge quantities of Iranian weapons, missiles and explosives in Beirut’s main civilian airport."
Following the article's release, caretaker Information Minister Ziad Makkari urged media outlets to condemn the report and to "expose the goals behind its publication at this particular time."
During a tour at the airport organized for ambassadors and the media, several politicians denounced the report as part of a "psychological war" against Lebanon.
Since Oct. 8, Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in almost daily cross-border fire in southern Lebanon, raising fears of a wider conflict.
'Wildly irresponsible story'
Middle East correspondent and investigative reporter Abbie Cheeseman, who previously worked for The Telegraph, distanced herself from the non-bylined piece.
"I stopped working for The Telegraph last month and had absolutely no prior knowledge of this wildly irresponsible story until it appeared today", she said.
The absence of a byline in the article also drew criticism online.
"An 'exclusive' with no byline. Now I've seen everything. Embarrassing stuff," commented an X user, while Beirut-based researcher, analyst, and fellow at Century International Sam Heller deemed it a "pretty explosive claim to attribute to anonymous 'whistleblowers' in an article with no byline."
Gregg Carlstrom, Middle East correspondent at The Economist, described the report as "fascinating journalistically," questioning who at The Telegraph decided to publish such a piece without anyone willing to put their name on it.
'Fateh 110 in a box'
Meanwhile, military expert and former war journalist Elijah Magnier criticized the report sarcastically, writing, "A 9-metre-long missile Fateh 110 (Sadodah) weighing more than three and a half tonne is being hidden 'in a box' at Lebanon's main airport, claim The Telegraph."
Political expert Karim Bitar noted that "Hezbollah’s control of Beirut airport has been an open secret for the past twenty years," suggesting that the timing of the report could serve as a pretext for an Israeli attack.
Michael Young, Senior editor at the Carnegie Middle East Center, echoed concerns on social media, fearing the story could be used as a basis for a future attack against the airport.
"I find this story full of question marks. I don’t doubt Hezbollah can use the airport at will, and has, but store material there? Why? To place arms in the first place Israel is likely to bomb?"
Campaign against LF MP Ghassan Hasbani
Among those cited by the Telegraph in the article is Lebanese Forces (LF) MP Ghassan Hasbani who said, "Hezbollah’s control of the airport has long been a concern for Lebanon and more so now if it increasingly becomes a potential military target in the conflict with Israel."
Consequently, Hasbani has been facing criticism on social media since Sunday.
"Look for the LF whenever something serves Israel’s interests. Here, MP Ghassan Hasbani has been a source for The Telegraph’s false article about Hezbollah storing missiles at Rafic Hariri International Airport," X user Ali posted on Sunday.
On Monday, Hasbani's media office said that The Telegraph "attributed the sources of its report ... to the airport's employees."
The office added that Hasbani had commented on the general concerns and realities surrounding Beirut international airport, which have been the subject of "many reports" over the years.