Lebanese President Joseph Aoun arrived in the city of Nabatieh on September 12, 2026, for a surprise visit. Nabatieh is a major center of Hezbollah’s support base. Accompanied by Lebanese Army Commander Rodolph Haykal and the heads of the security services, Aoun sought to demonstrate the restoration of state sovereignty in southern Lebanon.
Aoun toured the area of the government building in Nabatieh, the Central Bank, the Nabatieh Municipality, the government hospital, and the military units deployed throughout the city. During the visit, Aoun met with residents who called for an increased state presence, the reactivation of government institutions, and providing protection and services to the city’s residents.
According to Aoun, the state has no intention of abandoning the south. At the same time, Army Commander Rodolph Haykal stated that the army is present in Nabatieh and in every Lebanese community not under Israeli control.
The restoration of sovereignty? Control and army deployment?
In this case, the symbolism reflects reality – one in which there is neither sovereignty nor control. Above the convoy of the Lebanese president as it arrived at the site of the visit in Nabatieh, a huge billboard of Nasrallah, Hezbollah’s former leader, loomed overhead (see video). A picture is worth a thousand words – and in this case, it answers the question: Who really controls the city?
Wherever there are Shiites, there is Hezbollah. The Lebanese Army is present and deployed in Nabatieh, but not in order to disarm Hezbollah. The residents’ requests to the president, as described above, are consistent with Hezbollah’s interests. Given the way the Lebanese Army currently operates under the direction of its commander – a commander who, to put it mildly, makes every effort to accommodate Hezbollah at every opportunity – the military presence could become a human shield for Hezbollah. It neither threatens the organization’s capabilities nor impedes its activities, but it may restrict Israeli action against them.
