‘Lebanon doesn’t want war’ – Lebanese distance themselves from Hezbollah as war looms large

With an all-out war between Hezbollah and Israel seemingly getting closer every day, many Lebanese have begun to protest against the terror group for dragging their country to a potentially devastating war.

Fearing reprisals from Hezbollah, the largest and most powerful armed force in the country, many Lebanese have taken to the internet with slogans and caricatures in an effort to mobilize the public against war.

Among the most popular online campaign slogans is the hashtag “#Lebanon doesn’t want war,” which the Jerusalem Post reported had almost 40,000 appearances last month, with a potential reach to reach nearly 30 million users.

No To War ! #لبنانضد_الحرب#LebanonAgainstWar pic.twitter.com/W3UTHo7hFS

— Charbel Frem (@charbelp_frem) October 25, 2023

Other hashtags like “Disarming Hezbollah is vital” and “Resolution 1701” were also widely used and shared on 𝕏.

Lebanese journalist Nancy Nessrine Lakiss posted an image of a white dove, adding the slogan, “We shout for peace, not for war.”

“Hezbollah published a video from its military media provoking Israel, so Israel decided to threaten us with bombing the airport. Please have mercy on us! How can you bear this much blood and death? Who will build Lebanon again? And if it is built, who will live in the houses after all this destruction and killing,” Lakiss wrote.

A Christian anti-Hezbollah activist. Raymond Hakim, noted, “A destroyed life – this is what wars bring upon Lebanon,” also adding, “When I see what is happening in our Arab capitals, I ask myself: Why does Iran hate us so much?”

A large part of the anti-Hezbollah sentiment is being stoked by Lebanese Christians, with Christian parties at the forefront of the political fight against Hezbollah’s representatives in the parliament.

Kamil Simon, a Christian member of parliament, said in a recent interview that Hezbollah should absorb the blow from Israel alone because it started a war that the Lebanese do not want, adding that the government should not have to pay for southern Lebanon’s reconstruction following a potential war.

Over the weekend, the leader of the Lebanese Forces party, Samir Geagea, told the Saudi newspaper a-Sharq al-Awsat that the Lebanese people are in distress and that he estimated things would get worse.

“Unfortunately, there are those who take Lebanon into the unknown,” Geagea said, adding his regret at the Lebanese caretaker government’s lack of involvement in the situation as if it didn’t exist.

Lebanon has faced economic turmoil for the past decade, coupled with political instability that has left it under a temporary caretaker government since 2021.

The protest movement was re-energized last week after Hezbollah Sec.-Gen. Hassan Nasrallah threatened to strike Cyprus during a war with Israel.

نفس الحكي حكيناه عن مرفأ بيروت... #لبنانلايريدالحرب pic.twitter.com/pbaL9oK3cs

— Cyril Sirgi (@CyrilSirgi) June 24, 2024

Another push came on Sunday when the Telegraph revealed that Hezbollah forces were storing weapons in Beirut’s civilian airport, causing a satellite image of the airport with the slogan, “Beirut airport is no weapons storage," to go viral on 𝕏.