A house destroyed by an Israeli strike in the village of Houmine al-Tahta. (Credit: Illustration photo Téa Ziadé/L'Orient-Le Jour)
An Iranian flag hung by Hezbollah supporters in the town of Houmine al-Fawqa in the Nabatieh district was ultimately taken down last month on the orders of Nabatieh prosecutor Najat Abou Chacra, a judicial source confirmed to L’Orient-Le Jour.
The case is one of the rare judicial decisions concerning the display of foreign flags in Lebanon, where such practices remain relatively widespread.
The case, which dates to last August, began with a dispute between Hezbollah and Amal Movement supporters, each seeking to display their respective flags in the village. Amal supporters eventually planted their party’s flag in a concrete structure on land belonging to the municipality, making it impossible to remove. Hezbollah supporters then responded by hanging an Iranian flag on one of the village’s houses.
The dispute escalated and eventually reached the courts. Abou Chacra gave both sides 10 days to remove the flags, noting that Lebanese law prohibits the display of foreign flags on public or private property.
Leaders of both parties then requested a two-week extension to persuade their supporters to remove the flags.