AI Summary
5 min readBeirut’s international airport has long been a symbol of Hezbollah’s grip on Lebanon—a conduit for Iranian weapons and money. But in the last year, the airport has become a battleground in a different fight: the Lebanese government’s attempt to reassert sovereignty over parts of the state that Hezbollah had effectively taken over. As The Economist’s Middle East correspondent Gareth Brown explains, the airport is a microcosm of a larger power shift. Hezbollah is weakened after a devastating war with Israel, and the Lebanese government is quietly moving to squeeze the group out of state institutions—without confronting it head-on.
How Hezbollah got weakened
Hezbollah’s troubles began when it unilaterally dragged Lebanon into a war with Israel that started in late 2024. Over six weeks, Israeli airstrikes decimated Hezbollah’s military and political command, cleared dozens of villages along the southern border, and created a buffer zone. This came on top of earlier blows: the assassination of longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah, and the Mossad operation that exploded hundreds of pagers used by Hezbollah operatives across Lebanon. The group has taken a “relentless beating” over the past two to three years, Brown says.
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What you'll learn
- 1 (01:59) **Beirut Airport as a Microcosm** - Gareth Brown, Middle East correspondent, introduces the airport as a symbol of Hezbollah’s control and the government’s efforts to reassert sovereignty
- 2 (03:08) **Hezbollah’s Weakened State After the War with Israel** - Context on the recent six-week war that Hezbollah initiated and the severe blows it received
- 3 (04:14) **The Ambiguous Ceasefire Deal** - Explaining the ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel and the fragile calm it has produced
- 4 (05:49) **Interview with a Hezbollah MP: A Contradiction Exposed** - Gareth speaks with Hussein Hajj Hassan, revealing the group's internal contradictions and weakness
- 5 (08:05) **The Displacement Crisis and the Government's Strategy** - Over a million displaced people and the government’s new approach to confronting Hezbollah without direct military conflict
- 6 (10:11) **The Ceasefire’s Future Depends on Action Against Hezbollah** - How Israel’s willingness to maintain the ceasefire hinges on the Lebanese government’s effectiveness in weakening the group
- 7 (12:54) **The Labubu Bubble: A Strange Financial Phenomenon** - Josh Roberts, capital markets correspondent, introduces the bizarre bubble in Labubu dolls, small creepy elf-like collectibles
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Show Notes
Can peace hold in Lebanon while Hizbullah remains? Our correspondent weighs the balance of power between government forces and the Iran-backed militia. The resale value of Labubus is falling – who cares? And remembering Swedish death-clearer, Margareta Magnusson.
Watch extended clips from “The Insider” on rising oil prices. And listen to our “Weekend Intelligence” episode on “Kidulting: why adults are turning to toys”.
Guests and host:
- Gareth Browne, Middle East correspondent
- Josh Roberts, capital markets correspondent
- Ann Wroe, obituaries editor
- Rosie Blau, host of “The Intelligence”
Topics covered:
- Lebanon, Hizbullah, Israel, ceasefire
- Labubus, PopMart, Funko, financial bubbles
- Margareta Magnusson, death-clearing, decluttering
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