Lebanese academic Dr. Zena Mansour, a vocal critic of Hezbollah known for offering more moderate views on Israeli actions than commonly heard in Lebanon, was called in for questioning by the General Security Directorate Information Affairs Office on Monday, as she stated online.

Mansour has spoken on several Arab media outlets lately, arguing that Tehran treats Lebanon as a mere pawn and faulting Hezbollah for exposing the nation to a wider regional conflict. The summons drew sharp online criticism from Lebanese civic figures, especially coming just weeks after journalist Rami Naim received a one-month prison term and an $11,000 fine for remarks about two female lawyers.

Naim had earlier faced an undisclosed search warrant in April tied to his calls for Syrian forces to strike Hezbollah areas in Beirut. Lebanon has also handed down 15-year sentences in absentia to several academics and journalists, among them Maria Maalouf, who told The Jerusalem Post she received no chance to present a defense.

The exact reason for Mansour summons remains unclear, yet she posted that her stances, activities, and statements are all openly available on official and social platforms, captured in audio and video across traditional outlets and preserved in articles and research under her name as an academic, professor, researcher, and political commentator.

She described herself as a longtime political activist backing federalism, peace, and an end to fighting, while opposing what she termed a state of Druze failure, and noted her three runs as a reform candidate for the Druze seat in Chouf, Aley, and Beirut in 2018, 2022, and 2025.

Aoun pressed to act by Christian sovereigntist voices

Christian sovereigntist figures, led by Universal Syriac Union Party President Ibrahim Mrad, have pressed President Joseph Aoun to intervene.

At a moment when a militia acting beyond state control and labeled terrorist by multiple nations continues to function freely inside Lebanon after sparking wars, occupation, deaths, ruin, and displacement against the wishes of the state and most citizens, a starkly different picture emerges, Mrad stated.

This group works openly for a foreign power and has freely leveled treason charges and insults at the president without any leaders being called to account, despite repeated demands, he added.

By contrast, political activists, journalists, commentators, and academics now face summonses simply for voicing positions that defend state sovereignty, security, stability, and peace, with Dr. Zena Mansour the latest case brought before the General Security Information Branch.

Dr. Amine Jules Iskandar, president of the Maronite Union Tur Levnon, also appealed to the president, insisting the government must prevent the deep state from suppressing citizens, thinkers, or free expression.