Report: U.S. to continue Lebanon army support despite fatal Israel border clash
Last month, U.S. lawmakers sought to block Lebanon military aid over incident which resulted in the death of an IDF officer, 3 Lebanese soldiers.
By Jack Khoury Tags: Israel news Lebanon IDFThe U.S. administration will continue to provide funding to the Lebanese army, despite recent calls to halt promised U.S. aid in the wake of a deadly assault on Israeli soldiers at the Israel-Lebanon border last month, the Lebanese daily An-Nahar reported Saturday.
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A Lebanese soldier holding his rifle as Israeli troops patrol the border fence in the southern Lebanon village of Adeisa. |
| Photo by: AP |
Last Month, an IDF reserves battalion commander was killed as well as three Lebanese soldiers and a journalist as Lebanese and Israeli troops exchanged fire on the border in the most serious clash since the Second Lebanon War 2006.
Soon after the incident, U.S. Representatives Nita Lowey and Howard Berman, announced they were holding up $100 million that has been approved for Lebanon's army but not yet spent. A senior House Republican, Eric Cantor, said future funding should be stopped too, pending an inquiry.
"This incident was tragic and entirely avoidable. U.S. assistance is intended to enhance our safety and that of our allies. On August 3, I placed a hold on 2010 assistance to Lebanon in the wake of this outrageous incident," said Lowey, who chairs the House subcommittee on foreign aid.
On Saturday, however, An-Nahar reported that Washington intended to continue its military support of the Lebanese Armed Forces, saying the United States was due to move ahead with a planned $700 million armament scheme.
The report stated that the reason for the decision to provide Beirut with the promised funds was the LAF's success in recent years in stabilizing the turbulent country, as well as its conduct, which U.S. sources feel was conducive to the current relative calm.
Moreover, the United States, according to the report, had also reached the conclusion that the Lebanese military had indeed lived up to its vow to make sure none of the arms it receives be used by any other Lebanese group, a likely reference to Hezbollah.
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Decided he was still a Congressman, afterall. He also found out that France Saudi Arabia, Iran, and others had the capability and will to fill the gap if the US decided to abandon Lebanon to them.
This is all the excuse I, a Jew, need to stop paying my federal income taxes. I'll donate what I'd normally owe to Israel's defense instead. Obama, the closet Muslim traitor, actually wants another border clash. He'll get one alright, and a body-slamming at the polls in November, when all his fellow Democrats get voted out.
Why haven't you/don't you return to your homeland? That way your 'tax dollars' (or Shekels) can go directly to the 'slaughter of the innocent' fund. Yet still the question remains, why aren't you already living in your 'homeland'? Is it because you enjoy the best of both worlds? You want to lay claim to Israel while having the advantage of living in a democratic and free (or at least semi-democratic and free) country?
no need for rusty old weapons! let's get some new weapons from Iran! M-60? or M-113?ROFL F16 and f15 and f35 for israel and M16 for lebanese army? lol
The least they can do is apologize and admit their ignorance of the area and its conflict. The US should remember how quickly Hezbollah flexed its muscles against the Lebanese government when they tried to exert their rule of law and commanded Nasrallah to dismantle his clandestine, Iranian-sponsored military telecommunications network in Lebanon. Nasrallah who promised he would never ever raise one weapon against Lebanon kept his promise and instead raised many, and the death tally was relatively low only because the Lebanese groups capitulated almost immediately to avoid further bloodshed. If the Lebanese armed forces had the guts to actually enforce the Lebanese constitution they would have fought the usurping Hezbollah with their foreign agenda and un-stately flag and tried to bring order to the country. Unfortunately, Hezbollah would have won that war rather quickly with Syria's & Iran's help. The whole Lebanese government must feel like a family home in S. Lebanon that was forced to allow in terrorists who are now setting up shop in which to instigate acts of war against Israel, and then await the pinpoint, devastating retaliatory fire.
Unlike Israel and the AIPAC thralls in congress, the State department works with reality...not petty grudges and childish favoritism.
Lowey, Berman, Cantor? Now I understand the billions of dollars Israel receives.....without question. And we American taxpayers have no vote. Pity us stupids. Salaam/Shalom
Lebanon, in addition to what weapons it may get from the US ... may if need be, buy additional weapons from any source it desires .... that includes Iran. Lebanon is a sovereign country and no one has any right to dictate to it where it should or should not get its supplies from.
because it would endanger "american lives in future conflicts" China is at least as stable as Leb is and also "doesn't transfer weapons to Hezbz" So perhaps Israel could now renegotiate the deal with China ,after all it's only one third of the US deal ,how could it "endanger America" which is 50 times bigger than Israel ?
It does not take brains to understand that when Iran proposed to replace the US to deliver arms to Lebanon, the US had no choice. Either increase the influence of Iran or pay. They decided to pay, as expected. Good ME bargaining tactic from Lebanon. The AIPAC supported Cantor, Lowey and Berman cannot think rationally and strategically about the US interest when Israel is involved.
The AIPAC supported Cantor, Lowey and Berman cannot think rationally and strategically about the US interest when Israel is involved.
Unfortunately for America these types are incapable of thinking in a way other than they do.
The Congressmen rushing to suspend aid to the Lebanese army are all subsidized by AIPAC and in turn supporting right-wing Israeli positions. Unfortunately, Israeli positions are not always wise, and sometimes they may hurt Israel and the US, even in the near future. If the US withholds support from Lebanon, they will be able to get even more advanced arms from other sources, from France or even Russia for example, paid for by the Saudis. And if they want to be nasty, they will take the Iran offer and get weapons from that source. In short, the US will lose the influence it has in Lebanon and somebody else will gain it. And all this for some trivial matter. The fact is that the US does not supply arms that are dangerous to Israel, not even defensive anti-air missiles that can shoot down Israeli intruders. Another source can supply that, if the US loses influence. The House of Representatives is weak on geo-political issues. Better leave this to the Senate. Senators are of higher quality.
And all this for some trivial matter. And there you have it. The deaths of the Israeli, and the Lebanese, I suppose, are trivial. Who takes money from AIPAC, now that's important.
You don't need to be Einstein to understand that "big", "small", "trivial", and similar terms, are used in a relative sense. It is always "small compared to what". A dead Israeli is trivial when considering the US "losing Lebanon", which will cause many dead Israelis due to lost influence.
the alternative is either Russia or Iran stepping in and providing the arms Lebanon requires to protect itself from Israel.
US should keep their obsolete toys for themselves, their REAL weapons were always GIVING to the israelis to be used AGAINST the lebanese.
But absolute no condition must be attached ... if needed for defensive purposes they will certainly be used on IDF and settlers alike ... AIPAC must know that well in advance
And double dipping as always. Hezbollah IS the Lebanese government. Bring Damascus to ground level.
US is giving 700 million tpo lebanon LAF. US says it knows LAF has not been giving any weapoins to Hizbullah. P{erhaps npot but Hizbullah has been infiltrating LAf so tehy get to use these nice shiny weapons that US is giving them. Obama is a total and irrevocable idiot,. he is screweing the USa and he is screwing ISrael with his duplicitous secret deals with Russia. No wonder no one fears teh US anymore, with a weak klnees spineless slug for a president, Terrorists know they can count on their fellow muslim in power to turn a blind eye. Well Israel needs to sharpen their spear and be prepared to go all teh way in teh next round of conflict. Anything less will spell its demise. ISrael also bneeds to tell teh world and teh US to butt out once this war starts and not to pressure it to stop when it looks like it is about to cut off Hizbullahs head
ISrael also bneeds to tell teh world and teh US to butt out once this war starts and not to pressure it to stop when it looks like it is about to cut off Hizbullahs head'' ARE U Serious?? if the 2006 war did.nt stop it would be an even bigger political, militairy defeat and loss of reputation for israel! only the last day of the war HEZB. fired 400 rockets at israel!!