The party in recent years has regularly flouted the ISF's authority, with officers complaining that Hezbollah controlled areas are "no-go zones" and that its followers are untouchable.
Among the incidents: the kidnapping and release of French Diplomat Karim Pakzad, who was detained for several hours for "suspicious" photography; an attack on ISF officers in mid-April, whereby party loyalists forced the release of Hezbollah members who had been arrested at a checkpoint; and the previous detainment of another officer who had been investigating an illegal construction site in the Ghadir suburbs.
"Hezbollah considers itself above the laws which limit its activities, and parts of its existence," suggested Imad Salameh, Hezbollah expert and assistant professor of political science and international affairs at the Lebanese American University.
The Party of God is also in vocal opposition to UN Security Council Resolutions 1559 and 1701, which, if applied, would jeopardize Hezbollah's operation. And so, Hezbollah acts above the law from time to time, whereas "other laws that may not be in direct contradiction with its operation, Hezbollah can cope with and abide by," argued Salameh.
Though many see Hezbollah's willingness to break the law and to further expand its authority in "closed areas" as an obvious reflection of its desire to establish a "state within the state," the ISF is to blame, too, for so often turning a blind-eye on flagrant Hezbollah violations.
According to one ISF source, the relationship between the ISF and Hezbollah is well defined, as Hezbollah "has made clear that they should not be approached by state organs." The ISF's compliance with this demand is thanks to a governmental decision, since it "believes that the ISF should allow Hezbollah to continue operating as is until the issue is solved on a regional level," the source explained. "This is why the tents in downtown are still there."
"Closed areas"
Throughout its short history, Hezbollah has maintained "closed areas" in the southern suburbs of Beirut and in southern Lebanon. Over the years, these have been crucial to its resistance operations. Since the Israeli withdrawal in 2000 and in the run-up to 2004, however, Lebanese politicians of various leanings have called for the party to disarm, or to at least moderate its armed presence. During this period, said Salemeh, Hezbollah complied with some government demands, "allowing the state to take on various forms in its areas."
However, in the aftermath of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri's February 2005 assassination and the Syrian troop withdrawal two months later, "Hezbollah has grown more hostile toward demands for disarmament and for its areas to be [accessible to] Lebanese authority," said Salameh. "Hezbollah is now, more so than ever before, feeling that domestic players are trying to undermine its role."
In practice, these security measures of Hezbollah's threaten the credibility of the state security apparatus, which in turn increases tensions between Hezbollah and the government on other levels. The problem has several times compromised the security of Lebanese citizens. In late March for example, a dangerous escalation in tensions between residents of Tripoli's Abu Samra neighborhood and the Islamic Unification Movement (Tawhid), potentially could have been avoided if the ISF had not hesitated to enter these "closed areas." Hezbollah, say reports, protected the Islamic Unification Movement "on a security level" through its official Hajj Wafiq Safa.
In another recent incident, when citizens were attacked by armed opposition members at a downtown restaurant, the ISF failed to step up to the plate. MP Atef Majdalani attributed the problem to "a psychological and moral subjugation of the national security forces... who are unable to intervene and protect citizens from de facto militias."
A state within a state?
The "state within a state" mentality is not new to Lebanese who have long decided legal questions of personal status according to sect. Hezbollah, however, has developed this notion further, by extending borders, including everything from road services, to electricity and phone services, social and medical services, and even to buying land and properties, placing the territory under their own jurisdiction.
These developments undermine the state's ability to enter the areas as it deems in need of surveillance. Even Electricite du Liban (EDL) employees have, for example, felt threatened when entering certain "closed areas." Former President Emile Lahoud actually had to commission ISF officers to accompany these EDL employees from time to time.
The problem today, said Salameh, is Hezbollah's military positioning in a climate of severe confessional imbalance. "Today, the system is no longer able to attain the balance [it needs]," he argued. This may lead to another 1958 or 1975, concluded Salameh.
According to the ISF source, Hezbollah's disregard for the state authority is indicative of its disregard of the state as a whole, particularly during the current crisis. As the political vacuum continues unabated, the state sadly seems to have just accepted that Hezbollah will operate on its own terms. As such, the problem is not simply that Hezbollah has chosen to create a "state within a state," but also that it has been allowed to do so by the government. And so long as the state continues to allow Hezbollah to demarcate its own boundaries, the more likely it is that further confrontations between Hezbollah and the ISF will ensue.
Tags: Beirut, Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah, Internal Security Force, Law, Police, source: Now Lebanon
