By Barry Rubin
...that truly embodies the spirit of the era. And in this era the mainstream spirit is to ignore reality and construct a fantasyland. Case in point (as Rod Serling used to say on The Twilight Zone), an editorial entitled "The Long Pursuit of Justice in Lebanon." The editorial deals with the fact that four Hizballah figures, one of them very senior, have been indicted by the international tribunal for their involvement in assassinating former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
The editorial is six paragraphs long. It tells us that Hizballah is:
Read more
Showing posts with label Lebanon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lebanon. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Monday, July 4, 2011
Investigation Accuses Four Hizballah Officials of Killing Lebanon's Leading Political Figure
By Barry Rubin
Years of waiting--though leaks have been plentiful--have just about ended with the word from the international tribunal that four Hizballah officials, including the group's deputy military commander Mustafa Badreddine were involved in killing Lebanon's former prime minister Rafiq Hariri in February 2005. Yet Hizballah is now the leading force in Lebanon's government while its partner in the killing, the Syrian dictatorship, is Lebanon's foreign patron.
The indictments are setting off a potential crisis in Lebanon
Read more
Years of waiting--though leaks have been plentiful--have just about ended with the word from the international tribunal that four Hizballah officials, including the group's deputy military commander Mustafa Badreddine were involved in killing Lebanon's former prime minister Rafiq Hariri in February 2005. Yet Hizballah is now the leading force in Lebanon's government while its partner in the killing, the Syrian dictatorship, is Lebanon's foreign patron.
The indictments are setting off a potential crisis in Lebanon
Read more
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Lebanon: I Was Wrong! Hizballah (Plus Syria and Iran) Is Even More in Control
By Barry Rubin
I've written that Hizballah will have 60 percent of the seats in Lebanon's new government, with most of the rest in the hands of Syrian-Iranian clients. This is a disaster for Western interests. Lebanon is now in the revolutionary Islamist camp along with Iran, Syria, the Gaza Strip, and the Turkish government.
But I was wrong! There have been some changes and now Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati has announced his cabinet. And guess what? Hizballah has 70 percent of the ministries! Does the Obama Administration have any serious policy reaction to Lebanon being controlled by a radical Islamist terrorist organization that is a client of Iran? You know, those people who killed 242 American soldiers a few years back, kidnapped and at times murdered other Americans, and waged a war against Israel in 2006 after which the United States and UN promised to help disarm them, block their arms' imports, and keep them out of southern Lebanon?
Read more
I've written that Hizballah will have 60 percent of the seats in Lebanon's new government, with most of the rest in the hands of Syrian-Iranian clients. This is a disaster for Western interests. Lebanon is now in the revolutionary Islamist camp along with Iran, Syria, the Gaza Strip, and the Turkish government.
But I was wrong! There have been some changes and now Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati has announced his cabinet. And guess what? Hizballah has 70 percent of the ministries! Does the Obama Administration have any serious policy reaction to Lebanon being controlled by a radical Islamist terrorist organization that is a client of Iran? You know, those people who killed 242 American soldiers a few years back, kidnapped and at times murdered other Americans, and waged a war against Israel in 2006 after which the United States and UN promised to help disarm them, block their arms' imports, and keep them out of southern Lebanon?
Read more
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Leader of International Investigation: Syrian Leader Murdered Lebanese Leader
To see all my PajamasMedia articles in full, go here.
By Barry Rubin
Although we've suspected this for years, the head of the international investigation into the murder of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri has now publicly stated that the assassination was ordered by Syrian President Bashar al-Asad, you know, the guy the U.S. government has been cozying up to for the last 2.5 years and called a reformer? Will this announcement--coupled with the massive killings and torture in Syria--bring strong Western action against the Syrian dictatorship? And if not, why not?
By Barry Rubin
Although we've suspected this for years, the head of the international investigation into the murder of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri has now publicly stated that the assassination was ordered by Syrian President Bashar al-Asad, you know, the guy the U.S. government has been cozying up to for the last 2.5 years and called a reformer? Will this announcement--coupled with the massive killings and torture in Syria--bring strong Western action against the Syrian dictatorship? And if not, why not?
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Lebanon: Things Keep Getting Worse
Go to PajamasMedia to see my articles in full
By Barry Rubin
Is there a pattern here? I guess I'm going to be writing a series of "things keep getting worse" articles for some time to come because that's what's happening. After five months of bickering Lebanon has a government. It's now a satellite of Syria and Iran with a government dominated by Hizballah (18 of 30 seats!) The new prime minister said the new government would liberate "land that remains under the occupation of the Israeli enemy." And what Lebanese land might that be? If you needed any further proof of the functional insanity of the mass media on issues like this, consider the New York Times headline: "In Lebanon, New Cabinet Is Influenced by Hezbollah." Yes, I'd think having sixty percent of the cabinet posts and more guns than Lebanon's army might constitute influence. So let's see, Turkey is governed by a more confident (arrogant) Islamist regime. Egypt is about to be governed by an Islamist regime. The Gaza Strip is governed by an Islamist regime now allied with the Palestinian Authority and backed by Egypt and Iran and Syria. Iran is moving toward nuclear weapons. The Saudis, Israelis, and lots of other people have lost confidence in the U.S. government. And the brave dissidents in Iran and Syria get no Western help. Meanwhile, Western Middle East policy is based on the work of a great political philosopher and statesman. Click here to see who he is and what he advises
By Barry Rubin
Is there a pattern here? I guess I'm going to be writing a series of "things keep getting worse" articles for some time to come because that's what's happening. After five months of bickering Lebanon has a government. It's now a satellite of Syria and Iran with a government dominated by Hizballah (18 of 30 seats!) The new prime minister said the new government would liberate "land that remains under the occupation of the Israeli enemy." And what Lebanese land might that be? If you needed any further proof of the functional insanity of the mass media on issues like this, consider the New York Times headline: "In Lebanon, New Cabinet Is Influenced by Hezbollah." Yes, I'd think having sixty percent of the cabinet posts and more guns than Lebanon's army might constitute influence. So let's see, Turkey is governed by a more confident (arrogant) Islamist regime. Egypt is about to be governed by an Islamist regime. The Gaza Strip is governed by an Islamist regime now allied with the Palestinian Authority and backed by Egypt and Iran and Syria. Iran is moving toward nuclear weapons. The Saudis, Israelis, and lots of other people have lost confidence in the U.S. government. And the brave dissidents in Iran and Syria get no Western help. Meanwhile, Western Middle East policy is based on the work of a great political philosopher and statesman. Click here to see who he is and what he advises
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
