National Interests By Clifford D. May
The Bear on Jul 23 2006 at 7:28 am | Filed under: Uncategorized
Start with what’s best for Lebanon. For years, Lebanon was occupied by Syria for the benefit of Syria. The Cedar Revolution forced Syrian troops to depart but as former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright has noted: “In some ways the Syrians never left.”
Syrian agents have remained in place and several key members of the Lebanese government – including President Emil Lahoud — have appeared to take their marching orders from Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad. And Hezbollah – funded and armed by both Syria and Iran — operates as a quadruple threat: a political party, a terrorist organization, a military force and, in parts of the country, a state within a state.
UN Security Council Resolution 1559 calls for Hezbollah to be disarmed. That’s great except for one small detail: Lebanon’s military isn’t up to the task, and no great power is prepared to do it for them. The only way the Hezbollah tiger gets de-clawed is if Israel uses the war Hezbollah has provoked to get the job done.
Yes, innocent Lebanese are suffering in this conflict. That suffering at least should produce some good results. Lebanon’s liberation from the suffocating embrace of Hezbollah and its foreign sponsors would qualify.
More from Foundation for Defense of Democracies
Lebanon, Syria, Cedar Revolution, Madeleine Albright, Hezbollah, Iran, UN Security Council
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
