Hamas delivers third suspect of March rocket fire towards Israel

Lebanese Army announced Tuesday that Hamas had handed over a third Palestinian suspect, allegedly involved in the two rocket firing operations towards Israel on March 22 and 28, 2025.

The unclaimed rocket firing operations had triggered severe and deadly responses from the Israeli army in Lebanon, and Beirut has since issued a historic warning to Hamas against "using Lebanese territory to conduct any action undermining Lebanese national security."

"The Intelligence Directorate (of the army) received from Hamas the Palestinian (Q.S.), at the entrance of the al-Bass camp, in Tyre," the army said in a statement published on X, while recalling that the Palestinian movement had already handed over two suspects allegedly also involved in this matter, on Sunday and Monday. The statement specifies that these arrests are taking place "as part of the security follow-up and ongoing coordination conducted by the Intelligence Directorate to arrest other individuals involved (in the rocket fire), in accordance with the recommendation of the Higher Defense Council and the decision of the Lebanese government."

On May 2, the Higher Defense Council warned Hamas for the first time "not to use Lebanese territory to conduct any action undermining Lebanese national security, under penalty of taking the strictest measures and arrangements to end any violation of Lebanese sovereignty."

An ally of Hezbollah, which opened a front against Israel on Oct. 8, 2023, Hamas had claimed several attacks against the Hebrew state from southern Lebanon during the war.

On April 16, the Lebanese army announced it had arrested members of a "group composed of Lebanese and Palestinians" suspected of being responsible for the shootings. Three of these suspects were members of Hamas, according to a security source. On April 20, the troops announced they had thwarted a new shell firing from southern Lebanon towards Israel and arrested several suspects in the Saida region.