By Tal Beeri
The Lebanese Army's Intelligence Directorate is infiltrated by Hezbollah. For years, Hezbollah has employed numerous Shia officers within the agency for its own benefit and has focused its efforts on consolidating its influence due to the Intelligence Directorate's central role in the Lebanese Army and its significant impact on its operational activities.
Continued cooperation with Hezbollah from within the military forces Israel to take defensive measures.
The Army Commander, with the support of the Lebanese President and Government, must immediately dismiss and discharge any officer or soldier from any Lebanese Army unit who is associated with or cooperates with Hezbollah.
Reassignment to another position is not sufficient.
On August 22, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman revealed that Suhil Gharb, head of Military Intelligence in southern Lebanon, participated in obstructing the investigation into the killing of an Irish soldier with the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
The Irish soldier was shot in the head in the Aaqbiyeh area, between Tyre and Sidon, by Hezbollah operatives on December 14, 2022.
Gharb helped Hezbollah conceal details of the incident and tamper with evidence.
In addition, Gharb assisted in attempts to prevent the prosecution of the operatives.
Brigadier General (Amid) Gharb, a Shiite, is known for his collaboration with Hezbollah and maintains close contact with Wafiq Safa, Hezbollah's head of Coordination and Liaison.
On January 27, 2025, it was revealed that Gharb had transferred information from the Ceasefire Monitoring Committee's joint operations room to Hezbollah.
Among other things, he provided advance information about the Lebanese Army's intentions to carry out raids and patrols that could harm Hezbollah's activities and assets.
Gharb was appointed by President Joseph Aoun (then Army Commander) as the army's representative on the Monitoring Committee.
Due to Hezbollah's significant influence on the Lebanese Army, it appears that a significant portion of the disarmament activity currently being carried out by the Lebanese Army south of the Litani River is being coordinated between the Army and Hezbollah.
This coordination is reflected in the provision of advance information, the coordination of arrivals in certain areas, and, most likely, even the return of confiscated weapons to Hezbollah (the "revolving door" method).
It was recently revealed that Brigadier General Maher Raad, head of the Military Intelligence Directorate office in Dahiyeh (who has since been transferred to another post at the Intelligence Directorate headquarters), is cooperating on smuggling with senior Hezbollah officials, including Wafiq Safa.
In August 2017, the identity of another Shia officer in the Military Intelligence Directorate, Yahya Husseini, was revealed.
Husseini served in southern Lebanon and acted on behalf of Hezbollah.
In 2017, Husseini was a Major (Raad) serving as an Intelligence officer in the Hasbaiyya sector in southern Lebanon.
Husseini, who was later promoted, was linked, among other things, to the shooting attack carried out by the Lebanese Army against the IDF in August 2010 in the Aadaysit area.
As a result of the shooting, IDF soldiers were killed and wounded.
According to various reports, Husseini (under the direction of Hezbollah) persuaded the Lebanese soldiers to open fire.
In late 2017, Lebanon's ambassador to the UN denied that Husseini was cooperating with Hezbollah. The ambassador's name was Nawaf Salam, currently Lebanon's prime minister.
The Lebanese Army's Intelligence Directorate is deeply infiltrated by Hezbollah. The militia has placed Shia officers in key positions, allowing it to use this influence for its own benefit. The text underscores the importance of the Lebanese Army commander, with government support, immediately expelling any officer or soldier who collaborates with Hezbollah, rather than simply relocating them.
The article mentions several examples of this collaboration:
Suhil Gharb, head of Military Intelligence in southern Lebanon, was accused by the IDF of covering up the killing of a UNIFIL soldier by Hezbollah operatives in 2022. Gharb, who has close ties to Wafiq Safa, head of Hezbollah Coordination, also allegedly leaked information to the group about the Lebanese Army's intentions to prevent operations that could harm them.
Maher Raad, another intelligence officer, collaborated on smuggling activities with senior Hezbollah officials.
Yahya Husseini, an intelligence officer serving in southern Lebanon, was named in 2017 for acting on behalf of Hezbollah and for his alleged involvement in a 2010 attack that killed and wounded IDF soldiers.
The article concludes that this infiltration is so significant that many of the Lebanese Army's activities to disarm the militia south of the Litani River are carried out in coordination with Hezbollah. This collaboration includes the exchange of advance intelligence and, possibly, even the return of seized weapons.