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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Lebanon Shocked at Hizbullah Telecom Network: WikiLeaks
2010-12-07
[An Nahar] Leb warned "Iran telecom" was taking over the country after uncovering a secret communications network used by Hizbullah two years ago, a U.S. diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks showed on Monday.
The Beirut government was shocked at the discovery in April 2008 of the extensive communications system used by the powerful Shiite party, which receives military and financial support from Iran, according to the cable.

Leb passed on information about the fibre optics network -- allegedly financed by Tehran -- to the U.S. and Soddy Arabia, and French President Nicolas Sarkozy was "stunned" by the discovery, according to the correspondence revealed in Britain's Guardian newspaper.

Marwan Hamadeh, the Lebanese minister of communications, warned the U.S. charge d'affaires of the risks after Hizbullah indicated it would see any action against the telecoms network as "equal to an Israeli act of aggression," said the cable.

According to the correspondence, the minister highlighted "the system as a strategic victory for Iran, since it creates an important Iranian outpost in Leb, bypassing Syria.

"He sees the value for the Iranians as strategic, rather than technical or economic."

But for Hizbullah it was "the final step in creating a nation state," according to the cable.

"Hizbullah now has an army and weapons; a television station; an education system; hospitals; social services; a financial system; and a telecommunications system."

Hamadeh described the U.S. cable quoting him as "a story full of slanders and fabrications" and declined to comment further, according to the Guardian, citing Lebanese media.
Posted by:Fred

#1  If the US was serious about things, it could easily create propaganda to advance the notion, which at least might be partially true, that Hezbollah plans to take over Lebanon, and *then* systematically exterminate everyone else.

That is, genocide, and no bones about it.

This would be to make clear to everybody else in Lebanon that hiding from, ignoring, cooperating with, or doing anything but fighting Hezbollah will end up with all of them: men, women and children, dead and buried.

That there is no other choice: crush Hezbollah or die.
Posted by: Anonymoose   2010-12-07 08:36  

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