ISF Arrest Two in Haret Hreik for Shooting into Air

The Internal Security Forces arrested several individuals in Beirut's southern suburb of Haret Hreik after shooting firearms into the air during a funeral, an ISF statement said on Tuesday.

“During a funeral ceremony in the neighborhood of Haret Hreik near al-Musharrafiyeh some civilians fired arms into the air,” said the statement.

“As the result of police investigations, the identity of two individuals was recognized as N.B. and H.B., both Lebanese nationals,” it added.

They were arrested on June 3 and 4.

One of the detainees is a drug user and both have criminal records.

The ISF's move comes two days after the Hizbullah-affiliated al-Mahdi Scouts movement on Sunday organized sit-ins and rallies in several southern towns and villages to voice rejection of the celebratory gunfire trend.

The phenomenon of shooting into the air following speeches of Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, funerals or weddings is a trend in Lebanon.

The growing trend has reportedly prompted Nasrallah to issue an internal memo to Hizbullah's members in recent days, in which he warned that those who fire into the air would be expelled from the party without any compensations.

The phenomenon is not limited to Hizbullah's supporters or a certain political party and Lebanon's modern history has witnessed numerous cases of deadly celebratory gunfire.