Lebanon to file complaint with UN Security Council over Israel’s abduction of its citizen, IDF names man as Hezbollah operative – Firstpost

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

The man was abducted on Friday in an alleged Israeli naval operation in Batroun, about 30 kilometers north of Beirut. Lebanese authorities claimed the abducted man was a captain and denied he was a Hezbollah agent. Prime Minister Najib Mikati’s office issued a statement on the matter, which said the Lebanese prime minister had instructed his foreign minister, Abdullah Bouhabib, to lodge a complaint with the United Nations about the abduction.

The statement said that Mikati contacted the army chief, General Joseph Aoun, to obtain information about the ongoing investigation into the circumstances of the case. The prime minister also appealed to the command of the UN peacekeeping mission (UNIFIL), which confirmed that it is conducting the necessary investigations and coordinating actions with the army in this regard.

What we know so far

In a statement on Saturday, Mikati stressed the need to “accelerate the investigation to clarify the circumstances of this case and correct the situation.” Meanwhile, numerous mass media reported that the name of the abducted person is Imad Amkhaz. Israeli forces went on to describe him as an “important source of knowledge” in the naval forces of the Iranian-backed militant group.

According to Times of IsraelAmhaz was flown to Israel for questioning by Unit 504 of the Office of Military Intelligence, which specializes in HUMINT, or human intelligence, about Hezbollah’s naval operations.

Speaking to Lebanese media, Ali Hami, the country’s minister of public works and transport, said Amhaz was a civilian ship captain and had studied at a civilian naval institute. In images posted on social media, Amhaz was dressed in a uniform similar to a naval uniform.

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

With the help of agencies.