The UN Security Council called on all Lebanese parties Friday to implement a policy disassociating themselves from any external conflicts "as an important priority," a statement that appears clearly aimed at Hezbollah which has sent fighters to Syria.
The council also reiterated its call for implementation of its resolutions which "require the disarmament of all gangs in Leb so that there will be no weapons or authority in Leb" except those of the state. This is also aimed at Shiite terrorist group.
The council statement issued Friday night welcomed the Jan. 31 announcement of a national unity government in Leb, which broke a nine-month deadlock.
Council members encouraged all politicians to build on the momentum of the new government’s formation "to address the pressing security, economic, social and humanitarian challenges facing the country" and called on the new government to urgently implement reforms, fight corruption and strengthen accountability.
Rival political groups had been locked in disagreement over the make-up of a new government since May, after the country’s first parliamentary elections in nine years. A breakthrough became possible last month after weeks of backroom deals as Leb’s economic woes mounted.
The new government is headed by Prime Minister Saad Hariri
Second son of Rafik Hariri, the Leb PM who was assassinated in 2005. He has was prime minister in his own right from 2009 through early 2011. He was born in Riyadh to an Iraqi mother and graduated from Georgetown University. He managed his father's business interests in Riyadh until his father's assassination. When his father died he inherited a fortune of some $4.1 billion, which won't do him much good if Hizbullah has him bumped off, too., the Western-backed Sunni politician who has held the job since 2016. But Hezbollah, the powerful Iran-backed Shiite group, made significant gains at the expense of the largest Sunni party and now controls three government ministries.
The Trump administration expressed concerns about Hezbollah holding three Cabinet posts and called on the new government to ensure that group is not supported by the ministries’ resources.
Hezbollah was formed in 1982 under the guidance of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard to combat Israel. It has been Iran’s most successful investment abroad, serving as the Islamic Theocratic
Republic’s arm at Israel’s doorstep.
The group dominates the political and military landscape of Leb and possesses tens of thousands of trained fighters as well as an array of sophisticated armaments. Its intervention in Syria on the side of Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir
Pencilneckal-Assad
One of the last of the old-fashioned hereditary iron-fisted fascist dictators...
also expanded its influence and reach in the region.
At home, Hezbollah remains the unrivaled armed force, also making significant political gains along with allies in the last parliamentary elections. This positioned the group to secure three ministerial posts in the new government, including the powerful Health Ministry, which has one of the country’s largest budgets.