Hezbollah member protecting Resistance-owned truck killed by militants
In a statement, the Lebanese Resistance party says armed militiamen attacked the truck's crew after it overturned on the road in an attempt to seize it.
Hezbollah issued a statement on Wednesday clarifying the details of what occurred at the Kahaleh road in the Aley region in Mount Lebanon Governorate.
According to the Lebanese Resistance party, while one of its trucks was on its way to Beirut coming from Bekaa, the vehicle overturned on the road in the Kahaleh area, east of Beirut.
While personnel involved with delivering the truck were making phone calls requesting assistance to get it back on the road so that it continues to its designated destination, a number of armed individuals from the militias in the region gathered and attacked the Resistance members in an attempt to seize the truck.
Hezbollah's statement continued, "The gunmen first started throwing stones [at the vehicle's personnel] and then opened fire, which resulted in the injury of one of our brothers charged with guarding the truck, and he was martyred shortly after reaching the hospital."
Footage circulating on social media revealed that an armed militant initiated the fire exchange by shooting at the Hezbollah member who was later martyred.
مِنَ الْمؤمِنينَ رجالٌ صَدَقُوا ما عَاهَدُوا اللَّهَ عَلَيهِ فَمِنهُم من قَضى نَحبَهُ وَمِنهُم مَن يَنتَظِر وما بدَّلُوا تَبديلا
— الإعلام الحربي في المقاومة الإسلامية (@mmirLB) August 9, 2023
بمزيد من الفخر والإعتزاز، تزف المقاومة الإسلامية الشهيد المجاهد أحمد علي قصاص "محمد علي" من بلدة يونين البقاعية، والذي ارتقى أثناء قيامه بواجبه الجهادي pic.twitter.com/PziiT6Tf8g
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فيديو يظهر مقاتل من حزب الكتائب يطلق النار باتجاه الشاب الذي يرافق للشاحنة التي انقلبت في #الكحالة #وقائع pic.twitter.com/KloHSAV0Lh
— وقائع (@waqa2e3) August 9, 2023
"An exchange of fire with the attacking [militants] took place, after which a force from the Lebanese army intervened and prevented these gunmen from approaching or seizing the truck," the statement continued.
ترتيب المشاهد:
— Hamza Khansa (@Hamzakhansa) August 9, 2023
١ - عناصر ميليشيا القوات والكتائب يهاجمون الشاحنة والفريق المرافق. الشباب ردوا بإطلاق النار في الهواء لتفريق المحتشدين ومنعهم من كشف حمولة الشاحنة
٢ - البجاني (في المربع الأحمر ) يطلق النار من قرب حائط الكنيسة بشكل مباشر على الشباب.
٣ - سقوط الشهيد قصاص (في المربع… pic.twitter.com/0HeOv444e8
The party concluded that "contacts are still underway to address the issue."
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Najib Mikati followed up with the Army Commander, General Joseph Aoun, on the circumstances of the incident.
The Prime Minister called for expediting the ongoing investigations to uncover the full details of what happened, in parallel with taking the required field measures to control the situation.
Mikati called on parties to "exercise wisdom and calmness and not be drawn into impulsive reactions and wait for the outcome of the ongoing investigations."
He stressed that the army is continuing its efforts to restore order and prevent things from taking a wrong turn.
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