Lebanese academic Dr. Zena Mansour, a known critic of Hezbollah who has shared more moderate explanations of Israeli military action than is typical within Lebanon, was summoned for questioning by the General Security Directorate’s Information Affairs Office on Monday, she confirmed in an online statement.
Mansour has appeared on a number of Arab media sites in recent months, complaining that Tehran has reduced Lebanon to little more than a bargaining chip and condemned Hezbollah for placing the country "at the mercy of a regional war."
The summons has been widely criticized by Lebanese civil leaders online, who note that it comes less than two weeks after journalist Rami Naim was sentenced to 1 month in prison and an $11,000 fine over comments he apparently made about two female lawyers.
Notably, Naim was subjected to a search warrant he was not informed of in April over comments he made on Hezbollah, calling on Syrian authorities to rid the country of the group with strikes on its Beirut territories.
Lebanon has also recently sentenced a number of academics and journalists to 15 years in absentia, including journalist Maria Maalouf who told The Jerusalem Post that she was not given the opportunity to defend herself in the trial.
It is unclear why the judicial authorities have summoned Mansour, though she asserted online that she wanted to make clear, “My positions, opinions, activities, and statements are all publicly declared through official and social media platforms with utmost clarity and candor, recorded in audio and video on classical media outlets, platforms, and documented in articles, posts, and scientific and journalistic research bearing my name—stemming from my role as an academic, university professor, specialized researcher, and political writer.
"A political activist for many long years, a public supporter of federalism, of peace and ending the war, an opponent of the state of Druze failure, and a reformist candidate three consecutive times for the parliamentary elections for the Druze seat in the Chouf, Aley, and Beirut in the years 2018-2022-2025.”
Aoun urged to intervene by Lebanese Christian figures
Lebanese Christian sovereigntist figures, including President of the Universal Syriac Union Party (USUP) Ibrahim Mrad, have urged Lebanese President Joseph Aoun to intervene in the case.
“At a time when a militia operating outside the authority of the state—classified as a terrorist organization by several countries—continues to operate freely on Lebanese territory after causing wars, occupation, killing, destruction, and displacement against the will of the Lebanese state and the majority of its people, we continue to witness a completely different reality,” Mrad said.
“This militia operates openly in the interest of a foreign state, and has not hesitated to direct accusations, charges of treason, and insults against you personally, without any summoning of its leaders for investigation or accountability, as we have demanded repeatedly.
“In contrast, we are witnessing an alarming reality in which political activists, journalists, opinion makers, and academics are being summoned solely because they have expressed sovereign positions defending the state, security, stability, and peace. The latest of these cases is the summoning of the sovereign activist and academic Dr. Zeina Mansour for investigation by the General Security Information Branch.”
President of the Maronite Union–Tur Levnon Dr. Amine Jules Iskandar also addressed the president, demanding that the “government not to allow the deep state to oppress the people, intellectuals, or freedom of expression.”