Lebanon Calls Mossad Spy Rumors Fake After Two Men Held Over Israeli Phone Codes

Lebanese authorities released two Palestinian men on Sunday after holding them for questioning over suspicious phone numbers. The government formally rejected circulating reports that the detainees were Israeli Mossad operatives, labeling the narrative as fake news.

The pair, both from Ramallah, were detained after their mobile numbers were found to carry Israeli country codes. Prime Minister Nawaf Salam issued a statement from the Presidency of the Council of Ministers condemning what he described as the moral bankruptcy surrounding the incident. His office claimed hostile parties tried to tarnish his reputation and mislead public opinion by spreading the spy rumors.

Security forces questioned the men and confirmed both had entered Lebanon legally and had visited the country previously. The initial suspicion arose when the two Palestinians used their Israeli numbers to book a room at the Lancaster Eden Bay hotel in Beirut. An Uber driver and hotel staff alerted authorities to the reservation, prompting the investigation.

The incident generated conflicting narratives in local media. The independent outlet Beirut Time reported that claims circulated the men held Turkish passports and were staying at the hotel under Mossad cover. A separate rumor suggested Salam had deported the pair rather than detaining them, a claim that drew sharp criticism from anti-Israel voices in the region.

Anxiety over Israeli intelligence operations in Lebanon has persisted since the pager plot of September 2024. During that campaign, thousands of booby-trapped pagers exploded across Lebanon and Syria. Hezbollah acknowledged that most of the thousands killed or wounded were members of the group, though reports noted that civilians also suffered life-altering injuries in the blasts.