Motorcycle protests test the state's authority in Beirut's southern suburbs

Dozens of motorcyclists rode into Beirut on Saturday in protests by Hezbollah supporters, after the explosives seizure and a raid in which party members surrounded officers, Arab News reported. The Lebanese Army then deployed across the southern suburbs.

A senior Lebanese official told Arab News that Hezbollah's positions "remain within the media sphere" and the state does not respond to them. Beirut MP Waddah Sadek urged the army and security forces to protect the capital, warning that leniency could deepen the country's decline. Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah urged authorities to reverse measures taken against the group.

Lebanese Lobby holds that intimidation of officers on duty is unacceptable from any side, and that only the state may bear arms. This account rests mainly on one outlet.