Tabataba’i Elimination Effect? On November 30, a template for a protest letter was circulated on social media, allegedly sent to the municipality of San el-Fil, purportedly signed by residents living near the “Marc Shimon” building (a private real estate company that constructed the building) on Charles Fayez Shaoul Street. According to the publications, the letter states that senior Hezbollah figures, including Wafiq Safa, the head of the coordination and liaison unit in Hezbollah, are staying in or visiting the building with armed bodyguards, establishing a security perimeter around it, blocking the street, and checking IDs of passersby.
It is claimed that the presence and activity of Hezbollah in this area threaten residents’ security and increase the potential for an Israeli strike. The San el-Fil municipality has contacted the relevant security forces to investigate the matter. Marc Shimon (who owns the real estate company and the building) has denied any connection between the building and Hezbollah in general, and Wafiq Safa in particular. San el-Fil is an eastern suburb of Beirut with an originally Christian-majority population. We do not know who is actually behind the letter or whether it is authentic, but we do know that Hezbollah employs the human shield tactic throughout Lebanese territory, not only in its natural base areas.
