The Minister of Transport and Public Works, Fayez Rassamny, dismissed Fady al-Hassan from his duties as acting director general of Civil Aviation and acting head of Beirut airport, a well-informed source told L'Orient-Le Jour on Wednesday.

Rassamny appointed engineer Amine Jaber to the position of director of Civil Aviation, Kamal Nassereddine as head of the airport, and engineer Mohammad Saad to head the equipment maintenance service with Civil Aviation. These three appointments are temporary, "pending definitive appointments within the framework of the function," according to ministerial decisions (138, 139, 141) that L'Orient-Le Jour was able to see.

In anticipation of confirmation from the ministry, Hassan confirmed the information to L'Orient-Le Jour, stating that he "was completely leaving his duties."

Hassan, close to Hezbollah, was criticized for unjustified accumulation of functions. The three posts of airport presidency, general directorship of Civil Aviation and airport directorship were, incidentally, held by members of the Shiite community, close to the Amal-Hezbollah alliance. Hassan accumulated the first two, while the airport directorship was entrusted to Ibrahim Abou Alawa, who was also deputy president of the airport.

In a Lebanon in full crisis, hampered by the collapse of the local currency and endemic political disagreements, the functioning of Beirut airport was marred by power struggles, clientelism, insubordination and the shortcomings of a 40-year-old legislation that poorly defines prerogatives.

Despite the adoption in 2002 of law 481 governing the creation of the Civil Aviation Authority, this independent body was never established.

Israel repeatedly accused Hezbollah of using the airport to transport weapons from Iran, which is denied by the party and Lebanese officials. In mid-February, Lebanon opposed the flight to Beirut of an Iranian plane after being contacted by the United States, which informed it that Israel might strike the airport. This ban, also applied to another flight, triggered demonstrations by Hezbollah supporters who blocked the road leading to the country's only international airport.

A fragile cease-fire has been in effect in Lebanon since Nov. 27, following more than a year of hostilities and two months of open war between Israel and Hezbollah.