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Lebanon has arrested 32 people in recent months on suspicion of spying for Israel, a judicial official told AFP on Thursday.
The detainees are accused of providing information on Hezbollah that allegedly facilitated Israeli strikes against the Iran-backed militant group.
The arrests come after more than a year of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, which included two months of open conflict.
During that period, Israel struck Hezbollah targets, destroyed much of its arsenal, and killed several senior commanders.
The official, speaking anonymously, said six of the suspects were detained before a ceasefire in November, while the remaining 26 were arrested afterwards. Nine have already been tried by a military court, with 23 still under investigation.
Two of those convicted received sentences of seven and eight years of hard labour for supplying Israel with the coordinates, addresses, and identities of Hezbollah officials, knowing that the information would be used to target them.
Some detainees admitted to providing intelligence on Hezbollah locations in southern Lebanon and Beirut’s southern suburbs.
Among those arrested is a religious singer close to Hezbollah, whose brother was killed in an Israeli strike.
He is accused of working with Israel’s Mossad for financial gain and of giving coordinates that led to the deaths of a Hezbollah official and his son in south Beirut in April.
He allegedly also supplied the names of newly appointed Hezbollah leaders, enabling further targeted attacks.
A Lebanese security source said some detainees provided Israel with information on the vehicles used by Hezbollah members, as well as photographs of buildings suspected to be weapons depots or command centres.
Lebanon has repeatedly detained individuals accused of collaborating with Israel, often recruited online amid the country’s ongoing economic crisis. Those convicted face sentences of up to 25 years.
