Lebanon holds funeral for man killed during Hezbollah clashes

Residents of the Lebanese majority-Christian town of Kahaleh on Friday buried Fadi Bejjani, who was killed in clashes with Hezbollah, Lebanese media reported.

Bejjani was killed during clashes between members of Hezbollah and residents of Kahaleh after a truck carrying weapons for the militant group Hezbollah crashed on 9 August.

Two people were killed in the clashes after the residents surrounded the overturned truck, in the worst clash between Hezbollah and its opponents in Lebanon since fighting broke out in Beirut two years ago.

The truck, which Hezbollah claimed ownership of, overturned on a downhill turn near the mountain town of Kahaleh on Wednesday evening, and residents swiftly shut down the road around it, Al-Jazeera reported.

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Bejjani’s family did not want a formal funeral, therefore, did not invite officials to participate.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah held the funeral of its members killed in the clashes, warning of taking the country into a “sectarian sedition”.

Lebanese media reported that Prime Minister Najib Mikati has been following up with army commander Joseph Aoun on investigating the incident.

Two years ago, at least seven people were killed in clashes along a former front line of Lebanon’s civil war, following a rally held by Hezbollah and its Shia ally Amal Movement against a judge investigating the Beirut Port blast of 2020.

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