October 12, 2026
Record of arms shipments in Lebanon: from field arrest stations to open security crises
The recent shipment of explosives that was seized in the Dahr al-Baydar area has shed light on the issue of military trucks and cargo that are stopped by security checkpoints or intercepted by people on Lebanese roads. It is a long path of repeated incidents dating back to 2006, and the fates of their cargo varied between being allowed to continue or being confiscated for the benefit of the state, all the way to the Kahala incident, which is considered the bloodiest episode in this record.
In February 2006, a report by the Secretary-General of the United Nations documented the transfer of weapons from Syria to Lebanon via about 10 trucks loaded with ammunition and missiles, including Katyusha rockets. The trucks were stopped at a local checkpoint before they were allowed to continue their way south, coinciding with Hezbollah’s announcement that the shipment belonged to it, and that its handling was based on government policy, which considered resistance legitimate. During the July War of the same year, the then Minister of Defense, Elias Murr, stated that the Lebanese Army intercepted a shipment of missiles heading to the party and deposited them with the Ministry of Defense. He indicated in a subsequent American diplomatic cable that the Army had intercepted three missile shipments without providing precise details about their types or their fate.
These incidents were repeated in early 2007. On February 8, an arms shipment was stopped in the Hazmieh area near Beirut and was described as carrying “Grad” and “Katyusha” missiles and mortar shells heading from the Bekaa to the south. Despite the government’s initial refusal to hand it over at the request of a party official who acknowledged that it would serve his fighters, the truck was later returned to him. About four months later, another truck was seized at a checkpoint in Dorris, near Baalbek, loaded with Grad rockets, mortar shells, and machine gun ammunition. Six members of the party were on board, who were later released. The weapons were transported to an army military barracks without precise identification of their source or final destination.
In August 2021, the people of the town of Shuya in the Hasbiya district intercepted a truck carrying a missile launcher and arrested its crew before handing them over to the Lebanese army, which later announced the arrest of four people and the seizure of the launcher.
However, the most prominent and bloodiest episode was recorded on August 9, 2023, when a truck loaded with ammunition belonging to Hezbollah overturned on the main road in the town of Kahala while traveling from the Bekaa to Beirut. The people gathered, demanding that its cargo be uncovered and that it be prevented from being transported, while the truck’s escorts tried to lift it and continue on their way, which led to field tension that developed into a clash that resulted in the deaths of two people. One of them was a resident of the town and the other was one of the truck’s companions. The Lebanese army intervened to cordon off the incident, transporting the load to a military center and opening the road. The incident turned from a mere passing interception into a bloody confrontation that highlighted the dangers of transporting ammunition between residential communities.
With the outbreak of the “Support War” in October 2024, it was reported that residents of the Aley region intercepted a number of small trucks that were said to contain ammunition and missiles after targeting major roads in the region.
As for the latest development in Dahr al-Baydar, a car was stopped that was heading from the Bekaa to Beirut, and about 250 kilograms of “TNT” and a similar amount of “C4” were found inside it. Although this case has reopened the file on military cargo, the available data does not link it to Hezbollah, nor did the two detainees acknowledge their affiliation with it or their ownership of the shipment.
From the trucks of 2006 all the way to the events of Shuya, Al-Kahala, Aley, and Dahr Al-Baidar, the loads are numerous and the sides and destinations differ, but the Al-Kahala incident remains the defining landmark that demonstrated how a single truck can spark a large-scale security crisis that leaves victims and massive political and field repercussions.
