BEIRUT — Residents of the coastal town of Jiyyeh and neighboring villages in the Chouf district awoke to find leaflets scattered on the roads early Sunday morning, a source at the Jiyyeh municipality told L'Orient Today. The leaflets, which targeted former head of the Progressive Socialist Party Walid Jumblatt and Hezbollah, called for an end to the attrition border war and Lebanon's involvement in conflicts in southern Lebanon.
Since October 8, Hezbollah has engaged in near-daily cross-border exchanges of fire with the Israeli army in support of its Palestinian ally in Gaza, Hamas.
The leaflets alleged the presence of Hezbollah tunnels in several villages and claimed there were weapons depots hidden among residential homes. One leaflet stated: "Stop the war before it consumes you. Remove the depots from residential areas. A hypocrite like Jumblatt won't benefit you. You will not penetrate the mountains. Deploy the Lebanese army on the borders; it will protect us."
Another leaflet declared: "Remove the depots from residential areas. No tunnels in Jbeil, Keserwan, Toumat, Niha, and the Bekaa. May 7 will not be repeated, and this time we will prevail."
The reference to May 7, 2008, recalls Hezbollah's takeover of western parts of Beirut following government attempts to dismantle telecommunications networks used by the party. This led to clashes between PSP and Hezbollah members in the Chouf area, resulting in casualties on both sides.
While political figures remain divided over Hezbollah's role in the war against Israel, Jumblatt has stated his support for the party’s involvement, provided it ends once a cease-fire is achieved in Gaza.
In mid-August, Hezbollah released a video showcasing the most explicit view of its tunnel network yet, confirming previous claims of the Iran-backed party's extensive network of tunnels in southern Lebanon.
In mid-August, Hezbollah released a video showcasing its tunnel network in detail, confirming long-standing claims of an extensive underground infrastructure in southern Lebanon. The four-minute video, broadcast by Hezbollah's war media channel, showcased a network of interconnected passages named "Imad 4," after former Hezbollah commander Imad Moughnieh, a spokesperson told L'Orient Today.
Claims about Hezbollah's tunnel network have circulated for years, with social media posts from outside Lebanon questioning the group’s underground capabilities.