LONDON, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Lebanon's international dollar

bonds rallied on Monday after rebels in neighbouring Syria

ousted President Bashar al-Assad, fuelled by expectations the

events could weaken Lebanese armed group Hezbollah and bring

change to the country.

The 2031 bond gained the most, up 0.75 cents to bid at 11.59

cents on the dollar, its highest level since April 2022,

Tradeweb data showed.

The bid price remains deeply distressed, but the bonds

have

rallied

at several points since Israel began bombing Lebanon, which

investors attributed to hope that a weakened Hezbollah could

break political deadlock in the defaulted nation and enable

progress toward sustainable fiscal policies.

In Syria, rebels seized the capital Damascus in a lightening

advance and Assad fled to Russia following 13 years of civil war

and more than 50 years of his family's brutal rule.

Analysts said the latest events meant Iran had lost a key

component of its arc of influence in the region, as well as its

overland link with Hezbollah in Lebanon.

"This undermines Hezbollah further, which, in the near term,

means lower security risk for Israel and a potentially more

market-friendly government in Lebanon," said Hasnain Malik at

Tellimer.

Israel's international bonds also strengthened a touch,

gaining as much as 0.4 cents, with the 2043 bond being bid at

85.56 cents in the dollar, Tradeweb data showed.