Lebanese official slams U.S. move to freeze military aid

WASHINGTON - A top aide to Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri has harshly criticized a decision by the U.S. Congress to freeze military aid to Beirut in response to the clash on its southern border that killed an Israel Defense Forces officer.

The adviser, Mohamed Chatah, said yesterday the aid suspension is unjustified and weakens the government's efforts to build the Lebanese Army.

One week after the incident on the Israel-Lebanon border that killed Lt. Col. (res. ) Dov Harari, the chairman of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee, Howard Berman, announced that Washington would freeze $100 million in assistance earmarked for the Lebanese military.

Berman said Washington needs to closely examine "reported Hezbollah influence" on the Lebanese armed forces before it resumes providing financial aid.

	Lebanese soldiers riding on U.S.-made tanks in a parade last year.
	Photo by: AP

"Until we know more about this incident and the nature of Hezbollah influence on the LAF [Lebanese armed forces] - and can assure that the LAF is a responsible actor - I cannot in good conscience allow the United States to continue sending weapons to Lebanon," Berman said.

The congressman noted that the decision to halt aid was taken before the shooting incident, which only highlighted the need to better supervise the way money is being used.

A senior House Republican, Eric Cantor, said funding should be stopped pending an inquiry into the clash. Cantor said the lines between Hezbollah, the Lebanese military and the government had become "blurred."

In response, Hariri's adviser said the Lebanese military is a reliable organization and that an ally of Beirut should avoid steps likely to harm the country's efforts to build up its forces.

In the past year, the United States has transferred $400 million to Lebanon for the purchase of weapons, despite Israel's objections. France is also a major supplier of ammunition to the Lebanese Army, which has outfitted itself with sophisticated French-manufactured anti-tank missiles.

Following the shooting incident, Israel officially requested that the Obama administration and Congress reconsider the United States' aid policy to Lebanon. Israel made a similar request to the French government.

"There are countries that are equipping the Lebanese Army with advanced weaponry so it can confront Hezbollah," said an official in Jerusalem. "Instead, the Lebanese Army is using the weaponry to shoot at IDF soldiers."

The United States said it has seen no evidence indicating that American weapons were used by Lebanese soldiers in the cross-border incident.

According to State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley, Washington has no intention of re-evaluating its military relationship with Lebanon despite calls from Israel to do so.

"[U.S. financial aid to the army] allows the government of Lebanon to expand its sovereignty," Crowley said. "We think that is in the interest of both of our countries and regional stability as a whole."

The Lebanese Army is seen as woefully under-equipped compared to Hezbollah, which is believed to have been rearming since its 2006 war with Israel. The military lost 170 troops when battling an Al-Qaida-inspired Islamist group holed up in a Palestinian refugee camp in 2007.

In response to Congress' aid suspension, Iran announced that it is offering to extend support to the Lebanese military. Iran's ambassador to Lebanon met with Lebanese army chief Jean Kahwaji on Monday and said Tehran was ready to "cooperate with the Lebanese army in any area that would help the military in performing its national role in defending Lebanon." Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is expected to visit Beirut next month.