Hackers in Lebanon hijacked the display screens at Beirut International Airport to display an anti-Hezbollah message that accused Hezbollah of putting Lebanon at risk for a full-fledged war against Israel.
Passengers wait as a cyberattack targets the screens of departures and arrivals at a Beirut airport in Lebanon on January 7, 2024. The hacked screens at Rafic Hariri airport displayed an anti-Hezbollah content and messages opposing the war in southern Lebanon.
It was reported by the Associated Press that the message replaces departure and arrival information and displayed logos for Soldiers of God, a Christian group that came to light in 2023 with campaigns against the LGBTQ community in Lebanon, as well as a group called The One Who Spoke.
However, Soldiers of God has since released a statement denying involvement in the hacking incident.
It was revelaed by Albawaba that the message read: "Rafic Hariri Airport is not the airport of Hezbollah and Iran... Hassan Nasrallah, you won't find a supporter if you involve Lebanon in a war. You must bear the responsibilities and consequences,".
"Hezbollah, we won't fight on behalf of someone, you destroyed our port, and now you want to destroy our airport because of the weapons you bring through. Let the airport be liberated from the grip of the mini-state," it continues.
The aforementioned AP article went on to report that that message continued: "Hassan Nasrallah, you will no longer have supporters if you curse Lebanon with a war for which you will bear responsibility and consequences," the message read, unbeknownst to many, Hezbollah has many critics in Lebanon. One such criticism was against Hezbollah allegedly smuggling weapons through Lebanon's only civilian airport, which makes it a potential military target.
Some Background On The Hacking
In 2006, Hezbollah and Israel fought a brief war that resulted in the bombing of the regions only civilian airport. Hezbollah has been striking at Israeli military assets near the country's northern border since October 8, a day after the Hamas assault on southern Israel garnered an overwhelming response from the IDF.
The cyber attack comes days after a warning from Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah who spoke of consequences in northern Israel if the Gaza war extended to the Israeli-Lebanese border. Hezbollah has been escalating its attacks on northern Israel while Israel's defense minister said this weekend that the country seeks a political solution.
The opposing sides have fought almost daily over the past week following an attack that killed Hamas commander Saleh Arouri. Hezbollah fired 62 rockets toward an Israeli air surveillance outpost on Mount Meron.
The difference between missiles and rockets is missiles are guided, rockets are aimed.
HNGN will update this story as additional details become available.
