Hezbollah Activates Unit 121 to Target Its Shiite Opponents

Intelligence sources have disclosed that Hezbollah is preparing to eliminate its Shiite adversaries who have turned against it, amid worsening political, security, and economic conditions and the country's proximity to a broad conflict.

These reports indicate that the Lebanese militia's heightened readiness responds to increasing criticism from within the Shiite community, prompting the group to consider repression and liquidation measures by activating its most dangerous security unit, known by the code number 121, which specializes in monitoring and neutralizing opponents.

Local Lebanese statements corroborate these findings, confirming that Hezbollah has deployed internal security mechanisms designed not only to combat Israel or external foes but also to surveil and deter political opponents within Lebanon, occasionally inflicting harm on them.

The "Netsiv" website, citing Israeli monitoring sources, noted that "most information related to Unit 121 relies on intelligence assessments, media reports, and circumstantial evidence, rather than official Hezbollah disclosures."

Monitoring sources identified the unit as a secret cell directly subordinate to Hezbollah's Secretary-General, Naeem Qassem, attributing to it a series of political assassinations in Lebanon over the past two decades, based on documented studies and publications.

According to the same sources, Unit 121 specializes in surveillance, human intelligence operations, gathering technical and media information, operating operational teams, and implementing camouflage and deception tactics following operations.

While the unit does not maintain a fixed headquarters and its membership numbers only in the dozens, its activities intensify in specific Lebanese regions, primarily the southern suburbs of Beirut, southern Lebanon, and the Bekaa Valley.

Although integrated within Hezbollah's broader security and intelligence framework, its members remain completely isolated from other Hezbollah bodies, and the authorization of its operations requires direct approval from the highest party echelons, according to the Hebrew report's sources.

The unit's activity has surged alongside the crises fueled by Hezbollah in Lebanon. Following recent wars and the country's economic downturn, criticism has escalated from within the Shiite sect itself; voices in the Bekaa and southern Lebanon accuse Hezbollah of dragging Lebanon into conflicts that do not serve its interests.

The sources assessed that if the information about the current resurgence of Unit 121's activity is accurate, it signifies increasing fear among Hezbollah critics, diminishing prospects for an alternative Shiite leadership, a widening gap between the party's supporters and Shiites seeking full integration into the Lebanese state, and a shift among part of the Shiite community toward a "Lebanon first" stance instead of backing the "Resistance Axis," according to evaluations from Tel Aviv.

The analysis further clarified that "there is currently no indication that Hezbollah has lost most of its Shiite popular base," emphasizing that even the party's critics acknowledge it still enjoys support within the sect.

Under the leadership of Nawaf Salam, the current Lebanese government adopted a firmer stance toward Hezbollah over the past year compared to previous administrations.

The government declared that "only the Lebanese state has the right to determine the fate of war and peace," calling for limiting Hezbollah's military activity and reinforcing the state's monopoly on arms.

However, the Hebrew website pointed out that Lebanese security agencies' ability to act against Hezbollah remains limited, with the party maintaining extensive political, social, and security influence; this suggests that any direct confrontation with Hezbollah could undermine Lebanon's internal stability, according to the report's sources.