Person allegedly responsible for airport incident under arrest and investigation, local media report

A man was arrested after a fight that broke out between a traveler and a security employee at the airport on Sunday, MTV Lebanon reported, citing confidential sources. A video circulating on social media platforms showed a verbal argument between two men at the airport that turned physical, with the alleged security employee attacking and beating the traveler.

The Lebanese Army and the Internal Security Forces did not provide further information to L’Orient Today regarding the matter.

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The Ministry of Interior and Municipalities issued a statement on X Monday, announcing that "following the incident at Rafic Hariri International Airport, Minister of Interior and Municipalities Ahmad Al-Hajjar has requested that the airport security chief conduct an immediate investigation to determine responsibilities and take appropriate actions in coordination with the competent judiciary."

Airport Security Chief Brigadier General Fadi Kfouri stated that anyone found responsible for wrongdoing will be punished. According to Beirut Review, a local news website, the incident was an assault by airport security officers on a passenger following a disagreement between the passenger and Qatar Airways employees.

Hezbollah accused of involvement

Journalist Sakher Edriss said that the video shows "Hezbollah members assaulting a Beirut airport employee as they departed for Iraq and Iran. Reports say the reason was a name check. Lebanese authorities have recently begun to reduce Hezbollah's influence in the country, causing deep resentment among Hezbollah's leadership."

This claim has not been announced by authorities and L'Orient Today was not able to independently verify it.

Earlier in March, 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.

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, which is 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.

At a meeting devoted to security at Beirut airport, attended by Kfoury and the heads of the Internal Security Forces (ISF), General Security and Customs, the Interior Minister also spoke of the progress of the investigation into the incident.

“The case is in the hands of justice, to determine responsibilities and hold to account those responsible for the chaos” at the airport “a vital facility that reflects the image of Lebanon,” said Hajjar. He urged that measures be taken to prevent any recurrence of such incidents and discussed with the officials present the work in progress concerning security measures at the airport.