A confrontation between supporters of Hezbollah and the Amal Movement in the southern Lebanese town of Bissariyeh has sparked intense speculation about tensions within Lebanon’s dominant Shiite political alliance, coming at a particularly sensitive moment in regional diplomacy.
The dispute escalated into fistfights in the streets of the town, coinciding with reports that efforts to secure a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon had stalled following talks in Washington.
Nabih Berri, the veteran speaker of Lebanon’s parliament and leader of the Amal Movement, has played a prominent role in those negotiations. Through his adviser, Ali Hamdan, Berri reportedly conveyed messages to an Israeli journalist indicating that the Shiite alliance was prepared to accept a ceasefire formula, provided Israel adhered to its terms. Shortly afterward, however, Hezbollah publicly signaled its opposition to a ceasefire arrangement, fueling speculation about differences between the two allies.
The Lebanese Army intervened to contain the Bissariyeh incident amid growing domestic debate over whether Berri and Hezbollah’s leadership are diverging on key political and strategic questions.
Local media reports suggested that the dispute was triggered by objections from Amal supporters to the alleged presence of Hezbollah rocket-launching platforms near residential areas. Videos circulated on social media showed supporters of the two groups exchanging blows in the town’s streets.
Officials in Bissariyeh quickly sought to downplay the significance of the incident. The town’s local administrator denied reports that the confrontation was linked to missile launchers.
“Supporters of Amal and Hezbollah in Bissariyeh are united by bonds of brotherhood, affection and cooperation,” he said in a statement. “They stand in the same position, in the same trench, and on the same defensive line against Israeli aggression, which does not distinguish between one Lebanese citizen and another.”
Leaders from both movements moved swiftly to contain the fallout, describing the clash as an isolated personal dispute rather than a manifestation of political divisions. They emphasized that relations between the two organizations remain strong.
Their efforts reflect the sensitivity surrounding any suggestion of conflict between Hezbollah and Amal, whose relationship is shaped by a violent and often overlooked history.
During the late 1980s, the two groups fought a brutal war known in Lebanon as the “War of the Brothers.” Between 1988 and 1990, fierce battles between the rival Shiite movements left thousands dead. In some cases, members of the same family found themselves on opposite sides of the conflict.
Rula Talhouk, director of the Institute of Christian-Muslim Studies at Beirut’s Saint Joseph University, argues that both the Amal-Hezbollah conflict and the contemporaneous clashes between Shiite factions and Palestinian groups during the so-called “War of the Camps” have largely disappeared from public discussion.
She said many analysts and observers of Lebanese politics overlook these episodes, even though they are essential to understanding contemporary developments within Lebanon’s Shiite community.
“Current generations know very little about this past,” Talhouk said, “yet understanding it is crucial to interpreting the transformations taking place within the Shiite political sphere today.”
According to Talhouk, both Hezbollah and Amal have a vested interest in minimizing attention to their history of conflict and in preventing any renewed disagreements from being portrayed as structural divisions.
She argues that their alliance rests on a mutually beneficial arrangement: Amal provides Hezbollah with political cover within Lebanon’s state institutions, while Hezbollah’s military strength has helped preserve a political system that has enabled Berri to remain speaker of parliament for decades.
Together, the two parties are widely regarded as constituting Lebanon’s dominant Shiite political bloc, monopolizing Shiite representation in parliament and exerting significant influence over key political and administrative positions within the state.
Yet international actors often draw distinctions between the two organizations. Unlike Hezbollah, which is designated as a terrorist organization by the United States and several other countries, Amal is not subject to such classification. Berri consequently enjoys greater diplomatic flexibility and has often adopted positions that differ from Hezbollah’s on issues relating to the Lebanese state and relations with Iran.
The United States Treasury Department recently imposed sanctions on two Amal officials, accusing them of coordinating security activities with Hezbollah and undermining peace efforts. Some observers view the sanctions as an attempt to pressure Berri to alter his political course and distance himself from Hezbollah.
Whether the Bissariyeh clash was merely a local dispute or an indication of deeper tensions remains unclear. But the incident has served as a reminder that beneath the appearance of Shiite political unity in Lebanon lies a complicated history of rivalry, negotiation and competing visions of power.
Adapted and translated from the original Arabic.
Rami Al Amine
Rami Al-Amin is a Lebanese writer and correspondent for MBN covering political, social and cultural developments across the Middle East. He produces and presents the satirical critique segment Bitter Sweet, which examines current events through a critical lens. He holds a master’s degree in Islamic-Christian Relations from Saint Joseph University in Beirut. He is the author of Ya Ali, We Are No Longer the People of the South, a political booklet on Hezbollah, and The Two Mourners, a book on the history of Beirut’s Martyrs’ Statue.
