Marhaba.
I live in Lebanon, Aley district. Israeli airstrike targets are at proximity of my location. Beirut, and particularly Dahieh, is completely visible from my balcony. There are also refugees sheltered in my town.
Other things to know about me: I am a leftist, and a legal and political writer.
P.S. I will answer anything (as it is with AMA posts), not only issues pertaining to the recent events.
I don't live near saida so I don't have much info unfortunately.
Kataeb are critical of Hezbollah and the resistance, while still affirming their anti-zionist (more accurately anti-israeli) position. Their contention is that they don't want paramilitary groups with foreign allegiances to roam freely and challenge the autonomy of the state.
Didn’t they used to side with the Israelis in the 80s?
It's slightly complicated. The leader of the party at the time, Bachir Gemayel, would flirt with the idea of normalisation with Israel. And there was an agreement that was put in place after the Israeli invasion in '82 but was subsequently rejected by the Lebanese parliament. The Lebanese Forces, which was the military compartment of the party, was provided with Israeli intel in some of their operations, like the Sabra and Shatila massacre.
One civil war and two assassinations later, the Kataeb party rebranded itself as a progressive opposition party. They haven't participated in the government for more than a decade now. From the ruling party to an irrelevant group, really makes you think.