Lebanese media reported that a violent dispute erupted in the Shiite village of Al-Baysariyah, near Sidon, between supporters of Hezbollah and supporters of the Shiite Amal Movement, led by Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.
Israeli TV news KAN 11 reports that the confrontation reportedly began after Amal supporters objected to Hezbollah storing rocket launchers among residential homes. As more residents joined the fighting, the Lebanese army was forced to deploy troops to the village and separate the two sides.
Hezbollah and Amal are political partners and longstanding allies, and Berri frequently protects Hezbollah’s interests within Lebanon’s political system. Nevertheless, relations between the two movements, which dominate the country’s Shiite community, have never been free of rivalry and internal tensions.
The reported clash is significant because it suggests that opposition to Hezbollah’s military presence is emerging not only among Christians, Sunnis and Druze, but also inside its own Shiite political base. Residents may increasingly fear that rocket launchers hidden near their homes could expose their families and communities to Israeli strikes.