Beirut – The recent breach of arrival and departure screens at Beirut Airport, coupled with a hacking incident that involved an electronic message, has caused significant confusion on both security and political levels. This has led to widespread public inquiries about the airport's security reality and the threats surrounding it. Investigations continue to uncover the party responsible for the incident.
The content of the message accused Hezbollah and Iran of dragging Lebanon into war with Israel and concluded with the phrase "May the airport be liberated from the grip of the mini-state." This breach led to the disruption of the baggage inspection system, resulting in chaos at the airport for several hours.
Many speculate Israel's involvement in the operation, given its long history of counter-cyber attacks, coinciding with the unraveling rules of engagement between Hezbollah and occupying forces since October the 8th last year.
Breach and Measures
On Sunday evening, images of the message displayed on airport screens were widely circulated, stating, "This is not an airport for Hezbollah and Iran… Hassan Nasrallah, you will find no ally if Lebanon is afflicted with a war you are responsible for and its consequences… We will not fight on behalf of anyone."
This unprecedented breach prompted extensive ministerial and security responses at Rafic Hariri International Airport, where the Information Branch is leading the internal investigations to pinpoint the actual source of the breach. Lebanese Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi, during his tour of the airport on Tuesday, stated that "the breach is likely foreign and the investigations will reveal the truth."
Minister Mawlawi acknowledged the aviation sector's extremely difficult conditions and the need for cybersecurity, emphasizing that "what happened affects the security of aviation, passengers, citizens, and Lebanon."
Before that, Lebanese Public Works Minister Ali Hamieh announced that the preliminary detection of this breach by security agencies led to immediate measures to halt internet communication between the airport and outside, restoring the operation of the screens, and limiting the breach to all servers.
Absence of a Plan
In 2018, during the term of former Prime Minister Saad Hariri, Lebanon approved a comprehensive national strategy for "cybersecurity," which remains unimplemented due to the absence of executive decrees. That year, the General Security of Lebanon also held a cybersecurity conference, warning against online security breaches and electronic warfare with Israel.
In June 2019, a report detailing this strategy was released, highlighting Lebanon's goal to have a safer and more stable cyberspace, both domestically and in its international transactions—a goal unachieved for over two years.
Cyber Warfare
Since the Interior Minister hinted at a foreign origin of the attack, many consider the possibility of Israeli involvement plausible, especially given the situation in southern Lebanon and extended support from the Gaza Strip.
While security and political authorities have not pointed fingers pending investigations, the probability of other parties (internal or external) being involved is also considered, with the intent to exploit war circumstances for espionage and airport breaches, which already suffers from digital vulnerabilities.
Over the past decade, Israel's reputation has grown in "cyber warfare," both defensively and offensively, with computer screens becoming one of the fiercest battlefields it engages with its enemies, leading to widespread cyberattacks during the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Following the "Al-Aqsa Flood" campaign on October 7th, thousands of hacking and cyberattack operations targeted Israeli facilities, marking virtual and digital combat as the new battleground alongside the physical arena.
Airport Challenges
Approximately two weeks after Hezbollah's border confrontation with Israel in support of Gaza, the implications on Beirut Airport became evident. Middle East Airlines (owner of the official airlines) evacuated 10 of its 22 aircrafts to neighboring countries after insurers warned they would reduce war coverage on them by 80%, considering Lebanon's heightened risks.
Despite ongoing operations at the airport, these measures and recent events have significantly strained the airport, with foreign airlines reducing the frequency and number of flights to and from Lebanon.
Fears in Lebanon loom over vital facilities whenever hostilities escalate between Hezbollah and Israel. Any expansion of Israeli attacks could put Beirut Airport within its target sights, which revives memories of the July 2006 aggression that saw the bombing of fuel storage tanks and three runways, excluding the historical runway, causing the airport to be out of service during the war and for a month afterward.
Here, political analyst Ali Shukr tells Al Jazeera Net that "Israel is the primary beneficiary of the cyberattack on the airport," underlining that Israel does not recognize its digital battles.
This theory is further corroborated by the direct message to Hezbollah that accompanied the attack, following the group's retaliation against Israel's largest northern aerial observation base in response to the assassination of prominent Hamas leader Saleh Al-Arouri and six comrades.
