Lebanon cabinet lets Hezbollah keep its weapons
Decision signals group still has no intention of disarming; report: Lebanon army shoots at IAF warplanes.
By Jack Khoury and The Associated Press Tags: Israel newsLebanon's new government Wednesday endorsed Hezbollah's right to keep its weapons, the latest sign that the Iran-backed group has no intention of meeting a United Nations resolution calling for it to disarm.
Lebanon's government is a shaky coalition of Western-backed factions and the militant group Hezbollah, which has virtual veto power over the government.
The group is believed to have thousands of rockets and missiles hidden in basements and bunkers throughout Shiite Muslim areas of the tiny country.
The government decision came as the Lebanese army opened fire at four Israel Air Force warplanes that were flying above southern Lebanon, a Lebanese news agency reported. According to the report, the jets were forced to leave Lebanese airspace and return to Israel as a result of the anti-aircraft fire.
Hezbollah's refusal to give up its weapons has generated division within the country as well as concern in Israel, which says it is preparing to deploy a defense system to shoot down rockets from Lebanon.
A United Nations resolution that ended the 2006 Second Lebanon war between Hezbollah and Israel calls on the group to disarm, but Hezbollah says it must retain its weapons to fight off any future Israeli threat and persistent violations of Lebanon's airspace.
The United States lists Hezbollah as a terrorist group and denounces suspected aid by Iran and Syria. Washington also says Islamic militants linked to Al-Qaida have taken advantage of instability to infiltrate Lebanon.
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said recently that his group has replenished its weapons stock since 2006 and now has more than 30,000 rockets, which he said can strike virtually anywhere in Israel.
While Hezbollah remains determinedly anti-Israel, its new manifesto announced Monday showed signs of moderation on the Lebanese political scene, where Hezbollah holds sway with two members in the Cabinet and 11 of parliament's 128 seats. The group also has wide support mainly among Shiites in Lebanon.
All 30 Cabinet ministers voted Wednesday to approve the policy statement that endorses Hezbollah's right to keep its weapons. Five ministers from the pro-Western majority expressed reservations over the clause addressing Hezbollah, but did not vote against it.
The policy statement - which lays out the government's goals for the next four years - illustrates how the government is loath to take any strong action against Hezbollah for fear of sparking a crisis. The group has virtual veto power over the government's moves, most analysts believe, because sectarian violence could follow if it pulls out.
Many fear a renewed outbreak of the sectarian violence seen in 2008, when Hezbollah militants swept through Sunni neighborhoods of Beirut to briefly seize control after the government moved to curb the group's military communications network.
More than 80 people were killed in the violence that followed, pushing the country to the brink of civil war.
The new Lebanese government formed last month is headed by U.S.-backed Prime Minister Saad Hariri, head of the Western-backed alliance which narrowly defeated the Hezbollah-led coalition in June elections.
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Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah speaking to reporters in south Beirut via a video feed. |
| Photo by: (Reuters) |
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when Israel is once again forced to go into Lebanon and destroy Hezbollah's military infrastructure. If they think 2006 was bad then they are not going to like the next military campaign at all ! It is coming as the perfect storm and can't be avoided. Lebanon insures their own eventual destruction by harboring terrorists and making them a part of their government. I would not want to be living in Lebanon when Israel is forced to act.
So IAF is upset about getting shot at in Lebanese airspace then STAY OUT FROM OVER LEBANON Whe the lebanese people elected Hizbollah into government do ya think Israel's attack into southern Lebanon in 2006 just might have STRENGTHENED Hizbollah just before the elections. That is a big mistake in Israels strategy btw , the idea that fear will make a good neighbor when better relations would have made a better neighbor. Driving Palstinians into Lebanon in 1948 hasn't worked out real well for israel did it. Let me give you a clue about muslims. We are not allowed to make peace with those that have DRIVEN US FROM OUR HOMES.
Written as only a totally subjective person could.
There is a huge difference: Israeli aircraft over Lebanon are reconnaisance/intel gathering aircraft whereas Arab nations who have recently overlfown Israel are testing Israel's resolve. Lebanon has no air force to speak of to counter IAF . Lately, Israel must be perceived in some Arab nations et al to be more afraid of getting blamed for any use of arms than to legitimately be protecting its sovereign airspace.
...as they flew above Lebanon and in Lebanon's airspace. Any plane flying over Israel risks being shot diown immediately..
at its doorstep. By following Washington's instructions and approvals, Israel has found itself in more of a defensive position than ever before. Israel's Washington-schmoozing pols have sold out to Obama and his tough talk-but act weak type of advisers.
Why are you hiding behind your real name ? If you cannot use your real name, you would be afraid of miltary service, so don't criticize me for not lending my assistance in helping Israel fight an adversary with its battles. Besides, it's illegal for me to do that
...the main thanks to unchecked Israeli brutality. Sow what you wish to reap.
All those sheep herded into their pen by one sheepdog Hasan ,what a farce and embarrassment for the Lebanese .
So now we really know that Jonnyboy can,t read and interpret anything and as for repeating the same lies again ,well you,ve contradicted yourself so many times already it,s gone beyond a joke.
full implementation of the relevant provisions of the Taif Accords, and of resolutions 1559 (2004) and 1680 (2006), that require the disarmament of all armed groups in Lebanon, so that, pursuant to the Lebanese cabinet decision of 27 July 2006, there will be no weapons or authority in Lebanon other than that of the Lebanese State; what do you say now? johnboy!
"A United Nations resolution that ended the 2006 Second Lebanon war between Hezbollah and Israel calls on the group to disarm" Where, exactly? It called on Hezbollah to do exactly one thing: Stop Shooting. It did not call on Hezbollah to do anything else. It didn't even call on the LEBANESE GOVT to disarm Hezbollah i.e. it merely said that there can be no arms and no troops other than those "authorized" by the Lebanese govt. Looks very much to me that this article is saying that the Lebanese Govt is "authorizing" Hezbollah to remain armed, which means that neither Hezbollah nor the Lebanese Govt is violating Res 1701. Mind you, Israel is every time it overflies Lebanese airspace. Oh, and how's that withdrawal from "North Ghajar" going? Still there? Gosh! Who would have thought that......
Its leadership's call to force and violence places it on the wrong side of history today and the free world today. It should be de- militarized or shut down. There is no need to continue propping it up as a member state. It has become a liability to the region and the world today. Ben
The continued violation by Israel of Lebanon's air space must be counted with an urgent upgrade of anti-aircraft defensive systems. The obvious suggestion would be the Russian S-300 surface-to-air missile systems as a replacement.
So what is your point?
If the Lebanese government is officially letting Hizbollah keep their weapons then they are making themselves party to any future war against Israel. Do that and the Israel will see the whole country as a legitimate target. Does the Lebanese government want Israeli bombs landing in Beirut next time Hizbollah provoke Israel into fighting a war? This is a very dangerous move.
I, along with most others, would love for the US to stop giving money to Israel, though i wouldn't say that we're paying them to do nothing. Furthermore, i would glady keep that money in the US where it's needed and let Israel loose as the tough guy it thinks it is - and let the chips fall where they may, and leave the US out of it, less hated and much richer as a result. Just one question Gary. Who is going to come to poor little Israels aid when they take their delusions of grandeur into Iranian airspace? You?
it were not for Hizbullah tenacity and fighting skill, Israel would be still occupying south Lebanon. This is a fact.
Clearly the Lebanese Government's power has been constrained by the influence of Hezbollah. The Government allows a terrorist organization to function within its borders with its own armed militia. Any attacks on Israel by Hezbollah only makes the Lebanese Government complicit and responsible. Alas a weak Government is bullied by Islamic extremists. The losers are the Lebanese people.
Lebanon Allows Hezbollah to keep arms-Israel continues to wait and does nothing Iran thumbs its nose at int'l community over uranium enrichment-Israel continues to wait and does nothing Does Israel have a national security force anymore ? Or just politicians enjoying counting their money from America to do nothing ?
A lot of people, Arab, Israel, the West, and certainly Lebaneses wish they could erase Hezbullah from existence. But, Hezbullah under Nasrullah has become a dominent force. It liberated and South and with Hamas imposed a staus-quo with Israel. US schemes were history due to the tenacity of these two regional players. Arab regimes friends/agents of Israel and the US have diminshed in status and lost ground. Stretegic defeat looming in Afghanistan and Pakistan would further push the Western axis down.
Still, I hope Israel does not fall into the trap Ahamadinedjad has prepared, namely to provoke Israel into attacking first, either Lebanon or Iran.
The lebanese government can not put the monster back in the box. The first mistake was letting islamic extremist get a foothold of the south, then they permiated the country and cant be stopped because the lebanese government, military are afraid to confront hizbollah for fear that they will be targeted for neutralization as was Saad' baba. The forethought left out of the equation is Israel is a friend to all, even their enemys, for the right thing to do is to achieive peace, but at what cost. Hizbollah has admoriable goals, but the means to acheive them are distorted. First by pronoucing Israel as enemy this is wrong. Let the lebanese people decide who is and who is not their enemy. I think all will be suprised.