Washington's War of Words: Lebanon Pushes Back Against Ortagus' Accusations
Returning US President Donald Trump's new Deputy Special Envoy to the Middle East Morgan Ortagus seems abundantly ready to denounce Lebanon's resistance in grand and fictitious statements directly from the podium of the Presidential Palace in Baabda.
On Friday, Morgan Ortagus, still a newcomer to the Lebanese stage, made statements expressing the clear enmity the new administration of the US government has towards Lebanon's resistance while specifically mentioning Hezbollah as the main target of accusation.
'We are grateful to our ally Israel for defeating Hezbollah,' Ortagus said during her first visit to the country.
Ortagus, in more than the former quote, designated Hezbollah and the resistance as the main reason behind the country's systematic corruption and economic failure, while even thanking the parties in the government that are 'committed to making sure that Hezbollah is not a part of this government in any form, and that Hezbollah remains disarmed and militarily defeated'.
In the same statement, she named both President Joseph Aoun and Designate Prime Minister Nawaf Salam as part of the people deserving thanks for the subtle coup she suggests is happening within the new government against the resistance. This immediately prompted the office of President Aoun to issue a statement rescinding any involvement in the deputy's suggestions, and insisting that they 'do not reflect the official position of the presidency'.
مكتب الاعلام في رئاسة الجمهورية: بعض ما صدر عن نائبة المبعوث الأميركي إلى الشرق الأوسط مورغان أورتاغوس من بعبدا يعبّر عن وجهة نظرها والرئاسة غير معنيّة به
— Lebanese Presidency (@LBpresidency) February 7, 2025
Commenting on the US diplomat's remarks, political analyst Dr. Hosam Matar described the statement as 'a blatant insult to Lebanon's sovereignty, the President of the country, and the Prime Minister-designate.'
In a post on his X account, the Lebanese researcher said about Ortagus' remarks: 'It is a dangerous call to sow discord among the Lebanese people and sabotage the chartered foundations of civil peace and partnership'.
في سياق تصريح دمية واشنطن حاولت المبعوثة زج فخامة رئيس البلاد والرئيس المكلف في سياق استكمال دور نتنياهو في الحرب على لبنان وشعبه، ووضعت لهم شروط العمل والمهمة. وكل ذلك حصل من منبر قصر الرئاسة. التصريح هو إهانة فظة لسيادة لبنان ولرئيس البلاد وللرئيس المكلف وهو دعوة خطيرة إلى…
— Hosam Matar حسام مطر (@hosmatar) February 7, 2025
Dr. Matar insisted that the envoy's cheap attempt at dragging the Lebanese Presidency's name into the dirt serves only to further the Zionist Prime Minister Netanyahu's goals.
This bold anti-resistance stance reflects the Trump administration's new pattern of 'shock and awe', instead of seeming like the David Star Studded Deputy's collection of personal feelings on the only military force in the region still capable of inflicting the most pain on the Zionist entity.
Following a month-long series of shocking statements and decisions from Trump that have left many US politicians including the ones in his own retinue 'mind-blown', it's no surprise that Ortagus would follow in those same footsteps and for the first time in a long time: drop the act.
US' 'Smoke and Mirror' Strategy
What we've come to expect from most US administrations is a 'smoke and mirrors' strategy that relies heavily on deception, obfuscation and honeyed words designed to encase true intentions in a veil of uncertainty. But with Trump, it so far seems to be quite the opposite, with both him and his retinue seemingly putting their true intentions directly on the table, telling listeners to just 'deal with it'.
This strategy has worked for Trump during the two successful election campaigns he had, where his often strange, offensive or even nonsensical statements and promises would attract so much attention that it would cause a surge of votes in his favor, making US citizens view him as this sort of 'champion of the people' who speaks the truth and fights for their rights, when in fact his agenda serves only the corporate lobbyists and wealthy elites of the country.
However, this strategy only worked for Trump because the US population is so used to being fed lies and half-truths that simply became the status quo for them and their media, which constantly and consistently focuses on either what makes them the most money or what they are paid to report on. Trump, in this scenario, seemed like a refreshing alternative to a people who are mostly incapable of differentiating truth from falsehood.
So far, this 'boast first, ask questions later' strategy seems to be highly agreeable with Trump's Zionist ally Benjamin Netanyahu, who has even copied his pattern of pretension by bragging about his own, more murderous conquests in the form of a golden pager set in wood, a gift to the returning president.
⚡️🇺🇸🇮🇱JUST IN:
The golden pager that Israeli PM Netanyahu gave to U.S President Trump during their meeting.
This is an open celebration of the Israeli terrorist pager attack in Lebanon, absolutely disgusting. pic.twitter.com/EylBMH7d74
— Suppressed News. (@SuppressedNws) February 6, 2025
The Case in Lebanon
Generally though, in the case of a proud invincible people such as the resistance community in Lebanon, and in the case of the barely known easily replaceable deputy Ortagus, this strategy will never find a perch to stand on. Truth and falsehood is a concept the resistance community knows too well, and whether obvious or obfuscated, they can be relied on to stand against falsehood for the sake of truth.
For a people to struggle and suffer as much as they did, to lose so many of their precious sons and daughters and yet persist on the path of 'most' resistance, is evidence enough of their readiness to refuse any and all claims of victory made by either American or Israeli enemy, and a clear example of this is the near-instant popular mobilization of protests across the country in clear denial of the envoy's statements.
Lebanese citizens gather at Beirut International Airport in protest of Trump envoy Morgan Ortagus' inflammatory statements at the Lebanese Presidential Palace in Baabda. pic.twitter.com/5LtfTOvZdf
— Daniella Modos – Cutter -SEN (@DmodosCutter) February 7, 2025
The swift public backlash and official denouncements serve as a testament to Lebanon's enduring resilience and unwillingness to accept narratives dictated by external powers. In the face of such overt hostility, the resistance and its supporters remain steadfast, proving once again that neither threats nor propaganda can alter the course of a people determined to uphold their sovereignty and dignity.
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