Lebanese Army arrests man over alleged sectarian incitement, offensive online content

On Wednesday, the Lebanese Army Intelligence Directorate arrested a citizen identified as (A.S.) for allegedly publishing an image and written content deemed offensive to a religious figure and several state symbols, and for inciting sectarian tensions on social media on May 1 and 2, the Lebanese Army said in a statement on Friday.

The incident reportedly followed a video clip broadcast by a television station and the detainee is currently under investigation under the supervision of the competent judicial authorities, the Lebanese Army concluded in its statement.

Last week, a controversy took place after a cartoon of Hezbollah inspired by the video game "Angry Birds" was broadcasted by the Lebanese channel LBCI. The incident sparked an online smear campaign targeting Maronite Patriarch Bechara al-Rai, who is generally critical of Hezbollah and its war against Israel. LBCI removed the video following an order from the new public prosecutor at the Court of Cassation, Ahmad Rami Hajj.

The channel, whose editorial line is critical of Hezbollah, had posted a video showing Qassem and his fighters as caricatures, in a parody mocking the lack of balance in their military actions compared to Israel’s capabilities.

In the wake of the controversy, images of Rai circulated online, with the religious leader’s head replaced by a shoe, a Ranger boot similar to those shown in other social media posts by Hezbollah supporters, a pig, or a bird’s head from the famous "Angry Birds" mobile game series.

Another montage showed a smiling Rai next to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Images of the head of the Maronite Church were shared by several accounts, some apparently belonging to users living in southern Lebanon, while others appeared to be fake accounts or bots, with no followers and very generic profile photos.

President Joseph Aoun, for his part, condemned attacks against Christian and Muslim religious leaders and called for "keeping differences of opinion within a political framework," without explicitly addressing the party. Other officials in Lebanon also condemned the controversy that took place.