For years, the serene villages of Jbeil's highlands have been far from peaceful. Ghabat, a Maronite village nestled between the predominantly Shiite towns of Afqa and Lassa, has become a focal point of growing tensions due to territorial disputes.

Residents from the neighboring village of Afqa have been reported to illegally level lands in Ghabat, building unlicensed structures and altering the region’s natural landscape. These violations have disrupted the area’s physical and legal boundaries, exacerbating tensions among local communities.

The lack of accurate land surveys in Ghabat has made it easier for violators to carve out portions of land and claim them as their own. This has emboldened offenders to expand their activities, threatening the spread of illegal land grabs.

Particularly alarming is the exploitation of lands belonging to Christian endowments and Lebanon’s Maronite patriarchate. Such properties have increasingly become targets for encroachment, often through the use of armed force to establish de facto control, a problem aggravated by the absence of effective State intervention.

In a significant development, security forces demolished an illegal building in Ghabat today using a bulldozer.

Commenting on the matter, Bashir Assaker, a member of the Kataeb Party’s political bureau, pointed to the rapid increase in encroachments on private property, particularly in areas owned by Christian endowments, noting that armed force has often been used to intimidate and occupy land in the absence of effective intervention from the State and security agencies.

Assaker explained that Residents of Afqa have extended their encroachments beyond their village’s boundaries, seizing lands in Ghabat and Lassa. These lands have been cultivated or used for constructing residential buildings without obtaining the required legal permits.

Despite the long history of these encroachments, Assaker hailed the security forces’ intervention today as “a significant turning point.”

“For the first time in years, the encroachments were removed swiftly and smoothly, using a small security force,” he said.

The operation unfolded without confrontation, unlike previous incidents. Security forces demolished one building and halted construction on another, where clashes had previously occurred between authorities and violators.

Assaker emphasized that this action reflects a positive shift in the State’s approach to dealing with encroachments, reflecting its ability to impose and enforce the law.

“This development shows that the State is capable of asserting its authority and applying the law effectively,” he said.

 

The Kataeb Party has long called for restoring the state’s authority and empowering legitimate security forces to uphold the law across Lebanon. Assaker remarked that the recent actions validate the party’s stance and highlight the importance of law enforcement in addressing longstanding violations.

He affirmed that recent actions validate the longstanding positions advocated by the Kataeb Party, which has constantly called for restoring the State’s authority and empowering legitimate security forces to uphold the law across Lebanon.

Assaker shed light on the role of local authorities in enabling these violations as he revealed that Afqa’s Mukhtar (the head of the local government) had issued permits for construction on disputed lands, even though a 2016 decision by Jbeil’s district administration prohibited such activities.

“This type of encroachment persisted due to the State’s lack of oversight and the dominance of certain groups that seized lands by force,” Assaker explained, adding that the Kataeb Party is closely monitoring the situation.

Assaker concluded by affirming the Kataeb Party’s commitment to protecting private property and maintaining the region’s demographic balance in the area, called on the State to enforce laws impartially and protect the rights of all citizens by preserving private ownership, regardless of external pressures or challenges.