involvement in syria and lebanons election law
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today
Arab Today, arab today
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today

Involvement in Syria, and Lebanon's election law

Arab Today, arab today

involvement in syria and lebanons election law

Walid Choucair

Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, the secretary general of Hezbollah, was not helped recently by developments on the ground in Syria, and particularly those close to its border with Lebanon. On Saturday, Nasrallah delivered a speech to commemorate the party’s martyrs, at a rally featuring the slogan “The Martyr (Party) Leaders on the Road to Palestine.” While this was taking place, the party’s fighters were fighting in battles in the area of al-Qusair in Syria against the armed opposition there, and suffered a number of killed and wounded, who were later transported to Lebanon. A party source in the Bekaa Valley acknowledged that three Lebanese were killed in the fighting. These developments destroy all of the excuses that were delivered by Nasrallah in his speech, and in the domestic political struggle and escalation that has arisen in recent days. They contradict the very structure of Nasrallah’s address, which contained slogans and disputes with his rivals. Nasrallah usually constructs his speech around a linking theme, and declares his stances in an integrated context – this is even when his rivals believe that his arguments may be refuted, or that they are contradictory. As Nasrallah speaks to his base, he provides the political groups that support him with the ideas and tools to launch a defense of their political line. During his speech on Saturday, the linking idea was, as in many of his recent appearances, a defense of the party’s weapons, amid verbal attacks on this arsenal. The head of the Future Movement, former Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri, on the anniversary of his father’s assassination two days earlier, criticized these weapons, considering them the “mother of Lebanon’s problems.” He said they were part of Iran’s military capabilities and this clearly outraged Nasrallah, because al-Hariri does not want to hear the party’s repeated insistence that the topic of its weapons are not up for discussion. Hezbollah re-affirmed that weapons belong to the resistance, and cited the slogan of the event, "On the Road to Palestine," because he wants to take the issue of Palestine and supporting the cause, and confronting the greatest threat, Israel, and see these outrun the domestic divisions and struggles currently being witnessed by the region, "so that there is no place left for Palestine." Nasrallah went as far as to mock the rally held to commemorate Rafiq al-Hariri, "we want to make the dream a reality," by saying that the resistance in Lebanon "stands on a firm ground of reality… and this is not merely dreams that people want to see become a reality, or clowning around." He warned Israel against any aggression against Lebanon, which he had downplayed earlier, when he accused certain Lebanese of promoting such a scenario. Then, Nasrallah spent two-thirds of the speech on responding to al-Hariri's attack on the party's weapons. Nasrallah defended his allies in the government and their approval of the role of the resistance, repeating his earlier comments that the late al-Hariri had committed himself to the weapons of the resistance, before his assassination. Nasrallah repeated that Saad al-Hariri had committed himself to defending Lebanon against any Israeli aggression. A few hours later, the news came that these weapons were involved in the al-Qusair region of Syria. The role of these arms in Greater Syria appeared to win out over their other functions, which were enumerated by Nasrallah, such as confronting aggression against Lebanon and supporting the resistance in Palestine, even though he affirmed that "these arms would have no meaning at all if not for resisting Israel." There were two ironies in Nasrallah's speech. First, he said that the party's policy requires concessions when it comes to political posts and election laws. He said that Hezbollah would vote for the Orthodox Gathering electoral law proposal, and then it voted that way on Tuesday. Secondly, in his speech Nasrallah explained the policy of disassociation from the Syrian crisis, when he said, "I support in the way I want, and you can take that any way you want, but everything that leads to moving the struggle to the Lebanese arena is a mistake." As for disassociation, it is directed at the Lebanese government, and not the various political groups. The secretary general of Hezbollah anticipated the battles in al-Qusair with these comments, and Hezbollah's involvement in them in this way involves the danger of escalating domestic sensitivities over its actions. This adventurism can only be explained by quoting the Iranian cleric, Mehdi Taeb, who is responsible for the body tasked with combating the cyber war and the soft war against Iran. He said, "If we lose Syria, we cannot keep Tehran," and also spoke about the necessity of supporting the Syrian regime in the urban warfare it is waging. It is no coincidence to see these two instances of adventurism, namely in al-Qusair and with the election law – as the party supports a law that will fragment Lebanese society, even if the accusations of bribery to the party's allies to support the law are true. Just as Iranian support for the Syrian regime leads to more domestic division and regional complications, an election law that sees each sect elect its own MPs will take Lebanon toward more fragmentation and sectarian division, as if what is asked for is the political situation to be suspended, under the guillotine of waiting for the Syrian crisis to resolve itself. --- The views expressed by the author do not necessarily represent or reflect the editorial policy of Arabstoday.  

GMT 18:35 2018 Friday ,14 December

Can Armenia break the ice with Turkey?

GMT 21:25 2018 Thursday ,13 December

PM limps on with UK still in Brexit gridlock

GMT 21:21 2018 Thursday ,13 December

US begins crackdown on Iran sanctions violations

GMT 14:33 2018 Wednesday ,12 December

Political turbulence likely to continue unabated in 2019

GMT 14:26 2018 Wednesday ,12 December

Canada standing on the wrong side of history

GMT 13:27 2018 Tuesday ,11 December

France and the crisis of democracy

Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

involvement in syria and lebanons election law involvement in syria and lebanons election law

 



GMT 09:16 2017 Wednesday ,13 December

Cape wearing tips

GMT 20:49 2017 Monday ,21 August

South Asia floods claim more than 750 lives

GMT 19:06 2016 Saturday ,10 December

IOF Close Al-Nabi Saleh Village's Entrance

GMT 18:01 2017 Wednesday ,22 February

Abu Sayyaf ‘likely’ behind Vietnam freighter attack

GMT 06:41 2017 Sunday ,03 December

Hamas threatens 'intifada' over US moves on Jerusalem

GMT 16:17 2017 Saturday ,21 January

BMW 7 series crosses 5,000 unit mark in 2016

GMT 12:17 2016 Wednesday ,24 February

United Technologies nixes Honeywell merger

GMT 23:37 2017 Monday ,31 July

Saudi Arabia sanctions Hezbollah member

GMT 05:45 2018 Saturday ,29 September

Abdullah bin Zayed hosts official reception in New York

GMT 04:12 2018 Friday ,12 January

Saudi-led coalition says Yemen rebels threat

GMT 11:18 2014 Monday ,22 December

Richard Ward adds to The Chelsea Collection
Arab Today, arab today
 
 Arab Today Facebook,arab today facebook  Arab Today Twitter,arab today twitter Arab Today Rss,arab today rss  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday
بناية النخيل - رأس النبع _ خلف السفارة الفرنسية _بيروت - لبنان
arabstoday, Arabstoday, Arabstoday