Protest in Riad al-Solh square in Down Town Beirut in support of Hezbollah on March 31, 2026. (Credit: Mohammad Yassine/L'OLJ)
BEIRUT — Dozens protested Tuesday in Beirut’s Riad al‑Solh square in support of Hezbollah amid the war with Israel and against the government’s March 2 decision declaring the group’s military activities illegal.
Prior to the protest, a petition was launched by the organizers of the protest, under the title "The National Call for Comprehensive Resistance in the Face of the Aggression Against Lebanon", which gathers 550 signatories of academics, journalists, artists, and activists.
Among those who signed the petition are professors at the American University of Beirut and the Lebanese American University, as well as Hezbollah-linked names.
One of the organizers, Dr. Qassem Gharib, is an American University of Beirut (AUB) engineering professor. He told L'Orient Today that the invitation to the protest and the ability to sign the petition is limited exclusively to the academics, journalists, artists and activists.
A mix of academics, students, journalists, as well as displaced people participated in the protest.
During the demonstration, academic Hisham Safieddine, condemned people who stand against “the Resistance” in the current context. He ended the speech with a moment of silence for one of the signatories, al-Mayadeen journalist Fatima Ftouni, who was killed by Israel on Saturday.
Jad Melki, media professor at the Lebanese American University (LAU), emphasized the importance of media, reporting and rhetoric in this context and fighting “propaganda, lying, and misinformation.”
"If Iran is defeated, we will all be swept", another speaker, George Atallah, said. He commended Iran, Yemen, Palestine, adding: "We stand by our Resistance and victory will be ours."
Rapper Jaafar Touffar, who was detained during the beginning of the war for a video criticizing President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, gave a small speech, followed by a rap denouncing the government response, hailing the "Resistance", and denouncing normalization with Israel.
The war between Hezbollah and Israel resumed on March 2, two days after the U.S. and Israel launched a war on Iran, breaking a 15-month shaky cease-fire. Hours after Hezbollah fired rockets toward Israel sparking a harsh Israeli response, Cabinet banned all “military and security actions” by Hezbollah.
In August 2025, Cabinet passed a decision which dictated the enforcement of an arms monopoly plan submitted by the Lebanese Army.
The army had announced the completion of its first phase and began presenting the second phase to the government before the war erupted.
The Israeli war on Lebanon has so far killed at least 1,268 people and displaced a million people.
Reporting contributed by our journalist Tasnim Chaaban.
