Beirut officials block Hezbollah plan to illuminate iconic Raouche Rock with Nasrallah image
BEIRUT: Lebanon’s Interior Ministry contacted Hezbollah officials on Thursday to intervene after plans to project an image of former party chief Hassan Nasrallah onto a prominent Beirut landmark sparked outrage among lawmakers, a senior political source told Arab News.
The initiative was part of events planned to mark the first anniversary of the deaths of Nasrallah and Hashem Safieddine, both former secretaries-general of the group, who were killed during the war with Israel.
Ali Daher, head of Hezbollah’s media activities unit, announced that the commemorations would include illuminating Raouche Rock, a landmark off the coast of Beirut, on Sept. 25 with the images of Nasrallah and Safieddine.
However, the announcement sparked a wave of discontent and protests among a group of Beirut MPs, who recalled a history of political and security disputes between Beirut and Hezbollah, and unanimously agreed that the Raouche Rock “must not be used in partisan contexts.”
