By Nohad Topalian | 2025-08-22

BEIRUT -- The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) uncovered a fortified Hizbullah tunnel network in southern Lebanon, contradicting the Iran-backed group's claims of complying with the ceasefire.

The tunnels were discovered during Operation Kemmel 2, conducted under UN Security Council Resolution 1701.

The joint mission carried out reconnaissance from August 3 to 5 along Hizbullah's defensive lines near the villages of Tayr Harfa, Zibqin, and Naqoura.

The forces uncovered the extensive underground complex with several bunkers and a weapons cache that included rocket launchers, hundreds of shells and rockets, anti-tank mines, and other explosive devices, UNIFIL spokesperson Andrea Tenenti said.

The 10,000-strong UNIFIL has documented 302 weapons caches across southern Lebanon by early August, according to L'Orient-Le Jour.

The timing of the latest find is particularly sensitive, coming just as the Lebanese government announced that weapons possession would be restricted to state forces before year's end.

Hizbullah immediately rejected the government's move as a "grave sin." Ali Akbar Velayati, an advisor to Iran's leader, added that Tehran "absolutely opposes Hizbullah's disarmament."

Iran's influence

Political analysts said the tunnel network underscores the Iranian regime's strategy to cling to any remaining influence in the region by keeping Hizbullah armed, in defiance of international obligations and Lebanon's national decisions.

"Hizbullah lied about the absence of weapons in the south. It has circumvented the ceasefire agreement," political writer Asaad Bichara told Al-Fassel.

Hassan Qutb, director of the Lebanese Center for Research and Consulting, said the discovery disproves Hizbullah's claims of withdrawal behind the Litani River.

"This shows the group is not sincere in cooperating with the Lebanese Army and has no real intention of implementing the ceasefire agreement and Resolution 1701."

Qutb said Hizbullah's efforts to block UNIFIL patrols show both "fear of weapons discovery and disregard for pledges to clear the south of militants and arms."

The two analysts identified the Iranian regime's broader regional ambitions as driving Hizbullah's defiance.

Iran wants to preserve Hizbullah's military structure as a way of destabilizing Lebanon and protecting what influence it has left, Bichara said.

Tehran's options remain very limited now that its sea, air, and land supply routes to Hizbullah have been cut, he added.

Qutb said Iran wants to stay relevant in Lebanon by pushing Hizbullah to ignore government decisions and international resolutions.

This strategy, he explained, allows Tehran to claim it "still holds strong cards that can maintain or undermine stability."

"Iran views Hizbullah's disarmament as tantamount to withdrawing from the regional equation after the fall of the Syrian regime and the loss of the land corridor linking Tehran to Beirut," Qutb said.