Report: Hezbollah's Raouche event authorized but not rock illumination
An association close to Hezbollah has submitted a request to organize a rally facing the Raouche Rock in commemoration of Hezbollah’s slain leaders Hassan Nasrallah and Hashem Safieddine and the request has been approved by Beirut Governor Marwan Abboud, Al-Jadeed TV reported on Wednesday.
The association, however, was asked to pledge not to illuminate the rock with the images of Nasrallah and Safieddine and not to exceed 500 participants, the TV network added.
“The ceremony will begin with the Lebanese national anthem and will involve speeches and mourning hymns, from 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm Thursday, amid a pledge not to impede traffic movement and to maintain discipline,” Al-Jadeed said.
Hezbollah’s media relations department later issued a terse statement clarifying that it has not issued any statement about “the activity scheduled to take place tomorrow in Raouche.”
It was not immediately clear if it was referring to Al-Jadeed’s report or other reports that are circulating on social media.
A poster published Tuesday and widely attributed to Hezbollah had called on supporters to take part in the event, saying the rock would be illuminated with the Lebanese flag at 6:50 pm and with the pictures of Nasrallah and Safieddine from 6:55 pm to 7:00 pm.
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam had on Monday instructed “all public administrations and institutions, municipalities, their unions, and all relevant agencies” to be strict in “enforcing the laws governing the use of public land and sea properties, archaeological and touristic sites, official buildings, and landmarks that carry a unifying national symbolism.”
“I requested strictness in preventing their use before obtaining the necessary licenses and permits,” he added.
Hezbollah’s initial announcement had prompted several politicians and Beirut lawmakers to declare their rejection of the move.
MP Waddah al-Sadek said the move is “unacceptable on all levels.”
“They are not official figures and their pictures will be displayed in a city whose most residents reject their policies, not to mention that some accuse them of taking part in the murder of their leader (ex-PM Rafik Hariri),” Sadek added, noting that Hezbollah “has not obtained any permission from the municipality or the (Interior) Ministry” to carry out the activity.
“What’s worse is that their party, as usual, warns against being dragged into a civil war but wastes no chance to provoke Beirut’s residents. We must also not forget that the ‘glorious day’ is still carved in the memory of the Beirutis,” Sadek went on to say, referring to Nasrallah’s description of the May 7, 2008 day, when Hezbollah and its allies staged an armed takeover of parts of the capital.
“The government, which has shown its strength in its (latest) decisions (on arms monopolization), must prevent Hezbollah and others from making any provocative moves in order to preserve civil peace in the country,” Sadek added.
Beirut MPs Fouad Makhzoumi and Nabil Bader also wrote similar posts on the X platform.
On social media, Hezbollah supporters meanwhile reminded that the rock had been illuminated in the past with pictures of Saudi King Salman, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman and the Saudi, French and Emirati flags.
Hezbollah’s historic and revered leader Nasrallah and his successor Safieddine were killed in huge Israeli airstrikes on their underground bunkers during last year’s Israeli war on the group.
The Raouche Rocks are iconic natural limestone formations off the coast of the Raouche area in Beirut. Named Pigeons' Rocks for the wild rock doves that historically nested in them, these two massive rock islets have been shaped by erosion and are a popular spot for tourists and locals to admire from the nearby corniche or through boat tours that navigate through the arch of the largest rock.
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