Machinations of Conquest
Surprising, fast-moving news out of Tunisia, then Egypt's crisis, and that of Yemen, are focusing the world's attention on those Middle East countries, with mere foot-notes being reported on Lebanon's crisis. The several years of relative calm, was only that which occurs before the onset of a spectacular storm.After all, the UN commission of enquiry into the assassination of Rafik al-Hariri was well anticipated to result in another kind of storm.
Speculation abounded, after the initial accusations against Syria's involvement, to focus on Hezbollah, while Hezbollah pointed the finger of guilt at Israel's Mossad. If anything unites the disparate factions, tribal antipathies and religions, it is the goading of Hezbollah to permanently honour the general loathing and distrust of Israel.
This, from a country that traditionally lived in harmony with its Christians, Muslims (Shiites and Sunnis), Maronites and Greek Orthodox Christians and Catholics, Druzes and Jews. That country fell into a deep abyss and it is doubtful it will ever exist again. The creation of the State of Israel did that, when Jews became the enemy. And the PLO's Fatah settled in for the duration.
The enemy was surrounded by Muslim countries for whom land consecrated to Islam must never be surrendered. The raging hatred between religions became an inextinguishable fire where Christians of all denominations now are almost as endangered as the Jews. And the Druze make their accommodations where it most profits them, while incendiary sectarian hatreds between Sunni and Shiite continue to simmer.
Hezbollah is a Shiite medieval assault weapon, a bluntly assertive catapult, a creature of imperialist Iran, in common cause with Syria in a Sunni-dominated geography. But even within the sects there are those opportunists who bridge the gap and help create an atmosphere of non-partisanship to avoid direct, violent conflict.
Sometimes it works, often it does not, and then civil war erupts as it did for an extended 1975 to 1990, when Beirut became a city destroyed, with tens of thousands of Lebanese killed, foreign troops blasted into oblivion, news reporters and peace negotiators kidnapped and the country completely transformed.
Israel's occupation of southern Lebanon in the 1980s in response to constant bombardments from the PLO and assassination attempts, and its later entry into Lebanon in 2006 in response to Hezbollah's capture of IDF soldiers and rocket attacks simply consolidated the reputation it had garnered throughout its brief history as the geography's interloper and enemy.
With the release of the UN investigative tribunal's findings imminent, and details pre-released implicating high-placed Hezbollah operatives in the 2005 assassination resulting in an infuriated Hezbollah bringing down the government of Prime Minister Saad Hariri, Sunni businessman Najib Mikati was named as interim prime minister.
Mr. Mikati is known to be comfortable with Syria and with Hezbollah, who manipulated his nomination as prime minister-designate. He is also a man who will lose his nomination if he dares recognize the UN tribunal's results, should he choose to ally himself with his fellow Sunni legislator, Saad Hariri, who has pledged himself to honour the UN tribunal's findings.
"I say in all honesty that my nomination by Hezbollah does not mean I am bound to any of their political positions except as concerns the protection of the national resistance". The 'national resistance', of course, unites Lebanon and all its tribal and religious factions. The 'national resistance' refers to the ultimate enemy: Israel.
Hezbollah and Hassan Nasrallah will hide behind the bogeyman of Israel as long as it takes them to achieve the completion of the Lebanese make-over, to the complete satisfaction of Iran, whose long tentacles have made common cause with Hamas in Gaza, and where Hezbollah has long infiltrated, to teach Hamas their assaultive methodology.
Labels: Israel, Middle East, Traditions, Troublespots
posted by Pieface @ Friday, January 28, 2011
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