Lebanon to file complaint with UN Security Council over Israel’s kidnapping of its citizen, IDF calls man Hezbollah agent – Firstpost

As tensions continue to escalate in West Asia, Lebanon said on Saturday it will file a complaint with the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) after Israel kidnapped a Lebanese national. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) claimed that the Lebanese citizen they kidnapped was a Hezbollah operative.

The man was kidnapped on Friday during a suspected Israeli naval operation in Batroun, about 30 kilometers north of Beirut. Lebanese authorities insisted that the abductee was a sea captain and denied that he was a Hezbollah operative. Prime Minister Najib Mikati’s office released a statement on the matter, saying the Lebanese prime minister instructed his foreign minister, Abdullah Bouhabib, to file a UN complaint over the kidnapping.

The statement said Mikati had contacted Army Commander General Joseph Aoun to be informed of the ongoing investigation into the circumstances of the case. The Prime Minister also contacted the UN Peacekeeping Mission Command (UNIFIL), which confirmed that it is conducting the necessary investigations and coordinating with the military in this matter.

What we know so far

In Saturday’s statement, Mikati stressed the need to “expedite the investigation to clarify the circumstances of this case and set the record straight.” Meanwhile, several media reports named the kidnapped Imad Amhaz. The Israeli Defense Forces subsequently called him a “key source of knowledge” in the Iranian-backed militant group’s naval force.”

According to The times of IsraelAmhaz was brought to Israel to be interrogated by Unit 504 of the Military Intelligence Directorate – which specializes in HUMINT, or human intelligence – about Hezbollah’s naval operations.

While speaking to a Lebanese news channel, Ali Hamie, the country’s Minister of Public Works and Transport, claimed that Amhaz was a captain of civilian ships and studied at a civilian naval institute. Images posted on social media showed Amhaz in what appeared to be a naval uniform.

Amid the chaos, the IDF confirmed on Saturday that around 2,000 Hezbollah operatives have been killed by ground forces and in airstrikes since the ground offensive in southern Lebanon began a month ago. Israeli forces have escalated the air campaign in Lebanon against what they say are Hezbollah targets since late September, an escalation of the years-long cross-border war between Israel and Hezbollah since the start of Israel’s brutal war on the Gaza Strip.

With input from the authorities.