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Hezbollah Exposed and Deconsecrated as Iran's Puppet in Lebanon Following May Uprising
Ahmadinejad and the Iranian Shiite mullahs executing Khomeini’s will to export the “Islamic revolution” remain on their self-assigned mission to slay the “Great Satan,” the U.S. They were finding their campaign stumbling in all the pertinent places throughout the Sunni-dominated Mideast. This forced the Iranians to concentrate on multi-religious Lebanon in order to compensate for the major grounds lost lately in Iraq. The projection of Iranian power comes mainly in the form of Hezbollah.
Another try at putting a good face on the Hezbully victory.
Hezbollah’s most recent pretext to disrupt and dominate the nation was simple decisions of sovereignty by the Lebanese government on May7, including extending control over the Hezbollah communications network. Hezbollah refused. The group launched an armed revolt in Beirut, conquering districts, trashing government buildings, burning TV stations, and looting the city at will.

But six days of violent confrontations between the well-armed and trained Hezbollah fighters and untrained individual Lebanese did not lead to the fall of the government or plunge the country in complete chaos as it was intended. Lebanese citizens improvised strategies to defend their neighborhoods. Hezbollah fighters lacked necessary logistical support in order to remain in the areas they invaded. So Hezbollah had to hand the zones back to the Lebanese army. The Arabs, realizing the gravity of the Iranian assault, started an initiative culminating in a summit in Qatar. Ultimately, the factional and governmental representatives left with the Doha Accord. Pacification returned to the smoldering streets of Beirut.

On May 21, Lebanon's two main rival factions signed the brokered power-sharing agreement ending years of political deadlock and governmental paralysis since the Israeli invasion. The accord creates a national unity government in which the opposition enjoys veto power over decision-making. Hence Hezbollah and its allies can now pre-empt legislation aimed at the group's disarmament and hegemony. A new electoral law is to be hammered out in advance of parliamentary elections.

A few days later, on May 25, consensus candidate Michel Sleiman, a former army chief, was elected to the presidency filling a vacuum created during a half year of political head-butting with Hezbollah.

In retrospect, the May outbreak marked the beginning of a new phase in the execution of Iran’s plan to control the country. The subtle attempts, thinly veiled as democratic actions, to resolve an alleged political under representation, could not achieve the desired power grab by the Hezbollah-led opposition. So Iran resorted to its armed Lebanese militia in order to forcefully recover the Lebanese card. It was nothing less than Iran’s desire to turn the tables in Lebanon which brought about the attacks of May 7th.

The Doha accord might appear as a defeat of the forces of freedom in Lebanon and a win for Iran and Syria. In reality, a pragmatic analysis shows that the consequences of the events and the accord carry a lot of opportunities that could be smartly exploited to reinforce Lebanese sovereignty and diminish the Iranian and Syrian threats looming over the whole region.

Before May 7th, Hezbollah basked for years in a shroud of sanctity provided by its alleged “Islamic Resistance” against a “Zionist Enemy.” The “Zionist Enemy” means Israel as well as Jews in the Diaspora. Those Lebanese and Arabs, who suffered from the “defeat Israel” complex, saw in Hezbollah’s arrogance a satisfying illusion of their empowerment. That was the reason why the disarmament stipulation under the original 1990 Taef Accord, to end the civil war, specifically excluded Hezbollah. This exclusion emanated from the pretense that Hezbollah would never use its arms internally.

Since then, not only the weapons but everyone or anything related to Hezbollah became sacred and untouchable. The events of May 2008 shattered this taboo. Despite Doha, the support of Hezbollah has shrunk tremendously in Lebanon and all around the Arab world. Added to the cost of Hezbollah’s adventures was the internal isolation that weighed heavily on the Shiite communities in Lebanon.

The May events have clearly resulted in a deconsecrated Hezbollah, a more isolated Syria and an exposed Iran. This should be exploited to stop Iran’s Islamic Revolution. Internally, Shiite leaders who oppose Hezbollah should be supported. Shiites in Lebanon must be freed from their dependence on Hezbollah’s financial support. The West and the Arabs should immediately start planning to substitute the current aid coming from Iran with moneys distributed through the Shiite leaders who are courageously opposing Hezbollah. This will strengthen these leaders and give them an economic leverage with a chance to run in the 2009 elections and win some of the parliamentary seats held by Hezbollah.


Posted by: Fred 2008-06-10
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=241365