Lebanese security forces seized medicines deemed unfit for use and sealed a warehouse in the Galerie Semaan area near Beirut on Friday after a group of men attempted to obstruct a raid, prompting a standoff that ended with the arrival of Lebanese Army reinforcements.

The Internal Security Forces (ISF) said officers from its Central Criminal Investigations Department were carrying out a judicially authorized operation to confiscate medicines stored at the warehouse because they were spoiled or failed to meet the health standards required for distribution.

According to the ISF, several young men arrived on motorcycles and tried to prevent officers from entering the premises. The officers nevertheless completed the operation, seized the medicines and sealed the warehouse with red wax. The investigation is continuing under the supervision of the competent judicial authorities.

Lebanese media, including Al Jadeed and Annahar, reported that dozens of armed men identifying themselves as Hezbollah supporters surrounded the patrol and demanded that its commander withdraw. The number of men reportedly grew to several hundred, prompting the commander to seek reinforcements.

The commander contacted Public Prosecutor at the Court of Cassation Ahmad Rami al-Hajj, who instructed him to request support from the Lebanese Army and the ISF’s General Directorate, according to the reports. A large army force subsequently arrived, after which the armed men withdrew.

The ISF’s statement confirmed the attempt to obstruct the raid but did not identify the men as Hezbollah supporters or state that they were armed. It also did not mention the army’s intervention or identify the pharmaceutical company that owned the warehouse.

Raid followed health minister’s referral

The operation was conducted under the authority of al-Hajj following a referral from Health Minister Rakan Nassereddine, according to Lebanese media reports.

Al-Hajj had ordered an investigation into a list of suspect medicines requested from the Health Ministry’s director general. His instructions to the ISF included inspecting warehouses belonging to pharmaceutical importers and agents, seizing questionable stocks to prevent their circulation and identifying the companies’ owners.

A pharmaceutical inspector from the Health Ministry was also expected to attend the searches and seizures, with the findings to be reported to the prosecutor.

Al Jadeed reported that the warehouse in Galerie Semaan contained spoiled medicines or products that failed to meet the required sanitary standards. Neither the ISF’s statement nor the reports cited here identified the company or its owner.

The warehouse was sealed with red wax, a formal legal and administrative measure used by Lebanese law enforcement agencies, health authorities and the judiciary to close premises pending an investigation.

Hezbollah denies connection to warehouse

Hezbollah later denied having any connection to the warehouse or its contents.

In a statement published by the group-affiliated outlet Al Ahed, Hezbollah accused some media organizations of spreading misleading information about the incident. It said the security patrol had entered a security-sensitive area without following what it described as an agreed coordination procedure between the group and the security authorities.

Hezbollah said the arrangement took into account continuing Israeli threats against Beirut’s southern suburbs and the security risks facing the area.

The group said contacts with the relevant authorities and judicial officials had clarified the circumstances, allowing the patrol to complete its mission under the judicial order. It maintained that the situation had returned to normal before Lebanese Army reinforcements arrived, a chronology that differs from Al Jadeed’s account.

Hezbollah also expressed support for the Health Ministry’s measures and for security forces carrying out their regular duties. Its statement did not directly address reports that armed supporters had surrounded the patrol.