Lebanon is dangerously divided

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hezbollah, lebanon -flagBEIRUT, Lebanon – The political crisis gripping Lebanon has worsened following Friday’s political bombshell when Prime Minister Najib Mikati resigned as sectarian rivals battle for control of security forces and Syria’s civil war edges ever closer.

Mikati announced the resignation of his 30-member Cabinet after it failed to vote on extending the tenure of the Internal Security Forces commander Maj. Gen. Ashraf Rifi and failed to approve a supervisory board to oversee crucial parliamentary elections scheduled for June.

That left a dangerous political vacuum in a country where state control has steadily been eroded in a worsening confrontation between the Shiites, the largest single sect in Lebanon, and the heavily outnumbered — and outgunned — Sunnis.

Behind them, the Maronite Catholics, Lebanon’s largest Christian sect, are also split, leaving the nation dangerously divided.

The civil war in neighboring Syria, now in its third year, has inflamed sectarian passions with pro-Syrian groups, led by the powerful Shiite Hezbollah, squaring off against anti-Syrian factions led by the Sunni Future Movement of the late Rafik Hariri.

Suspects in hariri murderThe former prime minister and Lebanon’s leading statesman was assassinated along with 22 other people Feb. 14, 2005, in a massive suicide bombing in Beirut for which four Hezbollah members have been indicted by a U.N.-mandated special tribunal.

Few doubt that Syria’s intelligence organs were behind the attack.

That killing triggered a seismic split in Lebanese society, and defined as never before, even in a country where political assassination was a regular occurrence for decades, a dividing line that transcended sectarian loyalties, pitting pro-Syrians against anti-Syrians.

The clash between the two camps over the mechanisms of the parliamentary elections, whether it should be according to a 1960 law or new legislation redistributing the electoral districts, is being bitterly contested.

And there’s no sign of compromise from either camp, one of the main reasons Mikati quit after two turbulent years as prime minister, struggling to maintain stability and prevent the Syrian war igniting Lebanon’s sectarian hatreds.

“His resignation, if followed by an extended political vacuum, might drag Lebanon into sectarian clashes that are already taking shape in Tripoli and some suburbs of Beirut and Sidon,” said commentator Joyce Karam.

But it’s the struggle for control of the overwhelmingly Sunni ISF that is at the core of the Sunni-Shiite schism.

It underlines how it’s the historic need for security, as viewed by the rival sects, lies at the root of Lebanon’s capacity for anarchy, now fueled by the Syrian bloodbath.

riffi defLebanon’s Sunnis view the 30,000-strong ISF, heavily armed by Hariri and his patron Saudi Arabia since 2005, as their sole protector on the ground.

The Sunnis have no militias, nothing to match Hezbollah, veterans of 30 years of war with Israel and more powerful than the army, only the ISF.

Rifi, The ISF chief, is a Sunni like Mikati who hails from the northern flashpoint city of Tripoli, is due to retire in April when he turns 59, the maximum age for the post.

Mikati and the Sunnis want his term extended so that the ISF stays under Sunni command. Hezbollah and its allies oppose that.

Hezbollah, with Syrian help, has secured control of key security commands, particularly the powerful General Security Directorate, Military Intelligence and the security systems at Beirut’s air and sea ports.

Sunni control of the ISF was seriously dented Oct.19, 2012, when Brig. Gen. Wissam Hassan , the ISF’s intelligence chief and another Tripoli Sunni, was assassinated in a bombing that bore many similarities to the one that killed Hariri in 2005.

wissam hassan assassinated - protesters burn tiresHassan had been close to Hariri and became his security chief. He was also staunchly anti-Syrian and anti-Hezbollah.

Another key ISF operative, Capt. Wissam Eid, who cracked mobile telephone data evidence that Hezbollah operatives allegedly killed Hariri, was assassinated in a car bombing Jan. 25, 2008.

Mikati’s resignation underlines another key problem for the Sunnis — lack of strong leadership.

Hariri’s son and political heir, Saad, has been hiding in Paris and Riyadh for two years, fearing assassination, since Hezbollah brought down his government.

Other Sunnis politicians are reluctant to stick their necks out.

The danger is that this failure of leadership is driving many Sunnis, who feel increasingly disenfranchised by Hezbollah and its allies, into the embrace of more radical leaders who favor direct action.

UPI

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24 responses to “Lebanon is dangerously divided”

  1. ali elzein Avatar
    ali elzein

    This is the problem with Lebanon its not the citizens its the government and leaders that are dividing it.” Mikati and the Sunnis want his term extended so that the ISF stays under Sunni command” just think about that. so if he was a shia or Christian they wouldnt care but because he is a sunni they want him to staybin command. May 9 is the day i arrive in lebanon, I hope i dont regret my trip.

    1. the reporting in this article is not correct…whoever replaces rifi has to be a sunni as well….its a sunni position and second in command is always a maronite so i dont understand what the fuss is about? when lahouds term was extended as president they kicked up a fuss so whats happening now? the problem in lebanon is the media is at fault as well…they don’t just report facts they give their opinion which is wrong….

      1. 5thDrawer Avatar
        5thDrawer

        The ‘moustache’ said ‘I’m Next’. How could anyone argue? 😉

    2. 5thDrawer Avatar
      5thDrawer

      That’s a little soon Ali … my opinion. But if you get past the airport (a Jordanian friend was stuck there for 2 days – and paid to get out), you have a good chance of enjoying … if you don’t go to a couple of ‘2nd cities’.

      1. ali elzein Avatar
        ali elzein

        Any advice on which cities to avoid? I usually stay in the south about 10 minutes fron sur

        1. 5thDrawer Avatar
          5thDrawer

          Hi Ali … I don’t think Assir is sitting on the coast road … (lately hehehe) … and you’re probably safe in the ‘fabled’ city of Tyre. (love the old bones) UNIFIL headquarters still close … Don’t go inland too far anywhere … especially down there. 😉 Always go with ‘local advice’ on any given day … But the drive IS lovely along the old coast road in the north – Byblos north to Batroun perhaps – but maybe not into my favorite sea-side coffee spot – Tripoli (al-Mina) since the idiots have been restless lately.

          1. ali elzein Avatar
            ali elzein

            Thanks for the advice maybe you can show me around in beirut for a cup of coffee and a argili lol

          2. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            You may not have heard that ‘Anti-Smoking Activists’ invaded Lebanon … sigh … 🙁

          3. ali elzein Avatar
            ali elzein

            Sadly I did but there’s always the great outdoor view of the roache

          4. Hannibal Avatar

            he he… One thing we do not agree on.
            I want you to live long despite you… lol … and watch out do not push my buttons I will take the black label off the market with a relatively small campaign in Tripoli… LOTS of nitwits ha ha

          5. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            Lots of nitwits, yes … and better drinking in a small Muslim town somewhere south of it strangely enough … and better food. 😉 Thanks for thinking you’d like me around a while … but one never knows for sure Hannibal. One day you should cook up some grasshoppers for Prophet, however … hehehehe … health food.

  2. ali elzein Avatar
    ali elzein

    This is the problem with Lebanon its not the citizens its the government and leaders that are dividing it.” Mikati and the Sunnis want his term extended so that the ISF stays under Sunni command” just think about that. so if he was a shia or Christian they wouldnt care but because he is a sunni they want him to staybin command. May 9 is the day i arrive in lebanon, I hope i dont regret my trip.

    1. the reporting in this article is not correct…whoever replaces rifi has to be a sunni as well….its a sunni position and second in command is always a maronite so i dont understand what the fuss is about? when lahouds term was extended as president they kicked up a fuss so whats happening now? the problem in lebanon is the media is at fault as well…they don’t just report facts they give their opinion which is wrong….

      1. 5thDrawer Avatar
        5thDrawer

        The ‘moustache’ said ‘I’m Next’. How could anyone argue? 😉

    2. 5thDrawer Avatar
      5thDrawer

      That’s a little soon Ali … my opinion. But if you get past the airport, you have a good chance of enjoying … if you don’t go to a couple of ‘2nd cities’.

      1. ali elzein Avatar
        ali elzein

        Any advice on which cities to avoid? I usually stay in the south about 10 minutes fron sur

        1. 5thDrawer Avatar
          5thDrawer

          Hi Ali … I don’t think Assir is sitting on the coast road … (lately hehehe) … and you’re probably safe in the ‘fabled’ city of Tyre. (love the old bones) UNIFIL headquarters still close … Don’t go inland too far anywhere … especially down there. 😉 Always go with ‘local advice’ on any given day … But the drive IS lovely along the old coast road in the north – Byblos north to Batroun perhaps – but maybe not into my favorite sea-side coffee spot – Tripoli (al-Mina) since the idiots have been restless lately.

          1. ali elzein Avatar
            ali elzein

            Thanks for the advice maybe you can show me around in beirut for a cup of coffee and a argili lol

          2. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            You may not have heard that ‘Anti-Smoking Activists’ invaded Lebanon … sigh … 🙁

          3. ali elzein Avatar
            ali elzein

            Sadly I did but there’s always the great outdoor view of the roache

          4. José Jalapeño Avatar
            José Jalapeño

            he he… One thing we do not agree on.
            I want you to live long despite you… lol … and watch out do not push my buttons I will take the black label off the market with a relatively small campaign in Tripoli… LOTS of nitwits ha ha

          5. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            Lots of nitwits, yes … and better drinking in a small Muslim town somewhere south of it strangely enough … and better food. 😉 Thanks for thinking you’d like me around a while … but one never knows for sure Hannibal. One day you should cook up some grasshoppers for Prophet, however … hehehehe

  3. Hannibal Avatar

    The sooner people realize that the accused are innocent and the real criminal is the daemon in Damascus the sooner we can start the healing.
    When asked WHY? Samaha sheepishly answered: “This is what Bashar wants.”
    Yes ALL OF IT is the doing of ONE man. A one so called doctor who took an oath of doing no harm, the hippocratic oath or is it the hypocritical oath for his majesty in his case?
    Stop dwelling on this and on that… It was not Shartouni who killed Bashir… It was Assad Senior. It was not the Hezbollah security apparatus (or whomsoever) who killed Hariri. It was Assad Junior. That was a criminal regime from its inception. Sold out to the zionists like all other Arab regimes. Hezbollah with few men stopped the ghost of an army known as the strongest army in the mideast with few men (well ok they were Lebanese 😉 ) but still. How come all other countries with all their money and powers and armies and numbers accomplished nothing? Cowards, collaborators and traitors THAT is the simple true answer.
    As for the Palestinians, they need a homeland. A decent homeland. We need to come to the Israelis with a serious proposal. A Palestinian homeland with Arabs giving lands and Israelis giving lands for a sustainable Palestine and the right for Palestinians to go back home. Those born in foreign lands can choose their citizenship and let it be the end of it. If not this status quo cannot continue and we all may turn to the resistance.

  4. José Jalapeño Avatar
    José Jalapeño

    The sooner people realize that the accused are innocent and the real criminal is the daemon in Damascus the sooner we can start the healing.
    When asked WHY? Samaha sheepishly answered: “This is what Bashar wants.”
    Yes ALL OF IT is the doing of ONE man. A one so called doctor who took an oath of doing no harm, the hippocratic oath or is it the hypocritical oath for his majesty in his case?
    Stop dwelling on this and on that… It was not Shartouni who killed Bashir… It was Assad Senior. It was not the Hezbollah security apparatus (or whomsoever) who killed Hariri. It was Assad Junior. That was a criminal regime from its inception. Sold out to the zionists like all other Arab regimes. Hezbollah with few men stopped the ghost of an army known as the strongest army in the mideast with few men (well ok they were Lebanese 😉 ) but still. How come all other countries with all their money and powers and armies and numbers accomplished nothing? Cowards, collaborators and traitors THAT is the simple true answer.
    As for the Palestinians, they need a homeland. A decent homeland. We need to come to the Israelis with a serious proposal. A Palestinian homeland with Arabs giving lands and Israelis giving lands for a sustainable Palestine and the right for Palestinians to go back home. Those born in foreign lands can choose their citizenship and let it be the end of it. If not this status quo cannot continue and we all may turn to the resistance.

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