Lebanese authorities have arrested two public employees over an alleged scheme to seize Christian-owned properties in the Marjayoun area, a case that has now expanded to include church lands and a monastery near the southern border, according to information obtained by Nidaa Al-Watan.

The arrests come as part of the newspaper’s continuing investigation into suspected land grabs in the region. After earlier reporting on attempts to appropriate land belonging to residents of Jdeideh Marjayoun, Qlayaa and Bourj El-Moulouk in the Al-Jrineh real estate zone, Nidaa Al-Watan has learned that the same party is now seeking to take over property owned by the Greek Catholic Archdiocese and the Deir El-Mokhallis monastery in Abel El-Qamh–Wazzani.

According to the report, the alleged plot centers on the forgery of a map purportedly issued by the Haifa Brigade in 1931. The document was falsely stamped as a “true copy,” despite having no original, in what investigators believe was an attempt to legitimize claims over the church and monastery lands.

In this context, the newspaper reported the arrest of Moussa Moubarak, head clerk of the Land Registry Court in Nabatiyeh, who is accused of forging the map related to Catholic church lands in Abel El-Qamh–Wazzani in collaboration with lawyer Diaaeddine Zibara. Investigators also found that the date on an objection notice in Mazraat Al-Jrineh had been altered.

The authorities also arrested Hussein Khreiss, an employee at the Marjayoun cadastral office, who is accused of falsifying the surface area measurements of properties belonging to the Lebanese Republic in Mazraat Al-Jrine.

The two employees were detained following investigations by Lebanon’s State Security in Nabatiyeh, carried out under the supervision of the Nabatieh appellate public prosecutor.

Two requests have been submitted to the Beirut Bar Association to lift immunity from lawyer Diaaeddine Zibara, who is implicated in both files. Investigators are now awaiting a response from the Bar Association to proceed with questioning him and complete the probe.