Israeli forces seize senior member of Al-Jamaa al-Islamiya in Lebanon

BEIRUT – A Lebanese political party with an armed wing accused Israel on Monday of abducting one of its officials during a cross-border operation in southern Lebanon, in a move that escalates tensions along a volatile frontier.

Al-Jamaa al-Islamiya said Israeli forces seized its local official, Atwi Atwi, from his home in the Hasbaiyya district at dawn, taking him to an unknown location. The party, which has a Sunni Islamist orientation and operates a militia known as the “Fajr Forces,” condemned the raid as a “flagrant violation of Lebanese sovereignty,” describing the operation as an “act of piracy” carried out in the presence of Atwi’s family, whom they said were beaten during the abduction.

“Is this act a response to Prime Minister Nawaf Salam’s visit yesterday to the south and the reaffirmation of local residents’ support for the state?” the party asked in a statement. It described the operation as part of a “daily series of brutal violations” aimed at intimidating communities into abandoning their villages.

Israel’s military said the raid was carried out in the area of Jabal Ross, in the occupied Shebaa Farms region.

“In light of intelligence indications gathered in recent weeks, forces of the 210th Division raided a building in Jabal Ross and apprehended a senior terrorist affiliated with al-Jamaa al-Islamiya,” the Israeli army said.

The suspect was transferred to Israel for questioning. The military accused the group of launching attacks against Israel on the northern front and said weapons were seized in the raid.

The Lebanese state-run National News Agency reported that Israeli troops entered Hibbariyeh at around 4 a.m. local time before abducting Atwi, a former mayor of the village.

The municipality of Hibbariyeh condemned the operation as “a criminal act targeting citizens’ homes and dignity” and “an egregious assault on sovereignty, security, and stability.”

The incident occurs despite a ceasefire brokered in November 2024 to end more than a year of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, which also called for Israeli withdrawal from occupied positions within Lebanese territory.

Israel, however, maintains troops in at least five strategic locations inside Lebanon and conducts near-daily reconnaissance flights over southern regions.

Hezbollah has previously accused Israel of holding Lebanese prisoners, with lawmaker Hussein Hajj Hassan claiming last month that 20 Lebanese nationals were in Israeli custody, ten of whom were seized after the ceasefire.

On the same day as the abduction, Lebanese media reported that three people, including a child, were killed in an Israeli airstrike targeting a vehicle in the centre of Yanooh town in the Tyre district.

Al-Jamaa al-Islamiya has a history of military engagement with Israel, particularly in southern Lebanon, and maintains political and social influence in several areas. Its militia has participated in past confrontations with the Israeli army, often coinciding with broader tensions involving Hezbollah and other armed groups.

The latest raid highlights persistent instability along Lebanon’s southern border and underscores the fragile implementation of the 2024 ceasefire, raising concerns about potential renewed escalation in a region long plagued by cross-border incidents.