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The National
06-07-2025
- Politics
- The National
Lebanese leadership's failure to confront Hezbollah would invite more Israeli devastation
Optimism about Lebanon's ability to transition itself from a vassal state to a state with stature and the capacity to govern itself is waning. As neighbouring Syria makes strides following a civil war, Lebanon is still behaving like an extension of Hezbollah's mini state. This is largely because Iran hasn't allowed Hezbollah to surrender its weapons and relinquish its position as the leader of its 'Resistance Axis' against Israel, thereby refusing to facilitate US President Donald Trump's quest for a strategic shift in Lebanon. Mr Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, hasn't raised the issue of armed proxies in his negotiations with Iran, perhaps giving its leaders the impression that Hezbollah is a mere footnote in the nuclear talks. As for Israel, its confidence in its military capability to eliminate Hezbollah's arsenal – even if that means causing widespread destruction in Lebanon – is growing. It's for this reason that Lebanon's citizens, as well as its Arab and western partners, are growing weary of Beirut's political class. The country's top three leaders – President Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri – will face severe blowback if, out of wariness of Hezbollah, they don't force the group to place its weapons under the sole authority of the state. They will have only themselves to blame if their hesitation serves as ammunition for Israel to complete its mission of dismantling Hezbollah's arsenal by force, which might include reoccupying southern Lebanon. Mr Aoun genuinely believes in the oath he took to become President in January, which earned him popular applause and kindled hopes for a better future. He understands the importance of the international support he received for his presidency. His problem, however, has been to fall into the trap of starting a 'dialogue' with Hezbollah and getting caught in the clutches of its stalling tactics. By opening the door to Hezbollah's bargaining and the various Palestinian factions' refusal to disarm, Mr Aoun has imprisoned himself in a spiral of give-and-take, appearing weak and forfeiting much of the public's confidence. Mr Salam, meanwhile, seems to have retreated after making bold statements, affirming the need for Hezbollah to place all its arms under state authority, and speaking in a critical tone about Iran's revolutionary ideology. Whether his retreat is the result of a backlash he received from Hezbollah – or his own fears about accusations that he has abandoned pro-Palestinian positions from early on in his political career – the fact is that he has remained largely silent lately. As Mr Berri, the future of southern Lebanon rests on his shoulders. It's time for him to challenge his own political environment and Hezbollah's leadership, and to compel a choice between ties to Iran and loyalty to Lebanon. It's time for him to take proactive positions that spare southern Lebanon from Israel's aggression, and to return the decision of reconstructing the country to the Lebanese state – not leave it as a bargaining chip in Hezbollah's hands. The group's secretary general, Naim Qassem, once entrusted its affairs to Mr Berri when it was needed. Today, Mr Qassem and Hezbollah's leadership act from a deluded place of triumph, echoing Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's declarations of victory after its 12-day war with Israel, while completely ignoring Israel's capacity to devastate both Hezbollah and Lebanon. Hezbollah's leadership is turning a blind eye to the potential non-renewal of the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon – known as Unifil – which could lead to direct confrontation between the Israeli army and the ill-equipped Lebanese army, paving the way for a possible renewed Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon. Mr Berri's responsibility today is, therefore, historic. It requires courage on his part to confront Hezbollah publicly, and to speak honestly to Lebanon's Shiite community. Everyone knows that reconstruction funding from western and Arab states won't flow unless Hezbollah hands over its weapons to the state. Everyone also knows there is a real opportunity to secure Israel's withdrawal from the five Lebanese hilltops it is currently occupying, and to reach a realistic solution on the Shebaa Farms thus ending the rationale for 'resistance'. At that point, it would be possible to demarcate Lebanon's land borders with both Israel and Syria. Hezbollah's tactics to avoid disarmament are fast turning into ammunition for Israel. One day we hear that the group is thinking about limiting its role as an armed movement without fully disarming. Another day we hear it might hand over more weapons on the condition that Israel withdraw from the south. What remains constant, as Reuters reported citing sources within Hezbollah, is that the group 'does not intend to hand over its full arsenal and will retain light weapons and anti-tank missiles to defend against any future attacks'. The weakness of the Lebanese state is the result of an equation it has created for itself, with its top three leaders having surrendered their sovereign authority and placed it at the mercy of Hezbollah. The talk of the trio demanding prior guarantees from US Special Envoy for Syria, Tom Barrack – including that Israel withdraw completely from southern Lebanon – is little more than a contrived excuse, a deliberate obstruction and a severing of the hand that the Trump administration is extending to help Beirut. The necessary guarantees from Israel are already baked into the border normalisation strategy, which is, in itself, the guarantee. Let's hope that the coming days bring reassuring surprises when Mr Barrack returns to Lebanon for talks. Let's hope for a fundamental shift in the strategies of the three leaders, as well as in Hezbollah's positions. But this requires serious American resolve towards Iran. Demonstrating seriousness means proving that Washington is truly determined to stop Tehran's continued investment in its proxy doctrine, which undermines the sovereignty of independent states like Lebanon. Whether Washington, and Beirut itself, can prevent Lebanon from becoming a victim of both Israel's destructive ideology and Tehran's expansionist ambitions remains to be seen.
LBCI
29-06-2025
- Politics
- LBCI
MP Hajj Hassan on normalization with Israel: We will not change our position
Head of the Baalbek-Hermel bloc, MP Hussein Hajj Hassan, called on the Lebanese state to "fulfill its role alongside the Quintet Committee to stop Israeli attacks, secure the return of prisoners, and initiate reconstruction efforts." Hajj Hassan stressed that "Lebanese national issues are resolved among Lebanese themselves, and we have nothing to trade with the enemy under the pressure of bombardment, killings, and assassinations." He warned of ongoing attempts to impose normalization with Israel across the region as part of efforts to liquidate the Palestinian cause. "As part of the Resistance Axis, we have confronted this issue over the past years and will not change our position," he affirmed. Hajj Hassan added that normalization with Israel contradicts the interests of Lebanon, Syria, and the broader region, including the very countries that have already normalized relations.
Saba Yemen
16-06-2025
- Politics
- Saba Yemen
Iran-Israel War & New Middle East Project
Sana'a – SABA: Written by: The Political Editor The forces of global tyranny—led by the United States and the Zionist entity—have bared their fangs in a destructive campaign targeting the foundations of life in the Middle East, particularly on the military front. This is not a spontaneous development, but rather a deliberate step in the implementation of a long-planned strategy known as the 'New Middle East.' When this neocolonial project was first announced, it was categorically rejected by the Arab region. At that point, the U.S., Israel, and their allies recognized the difficulty of achieving their aims so long as powerful regional states like Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Iran, and the Gulf countries maintained substantial military and economic capabilities. Thus, a step-by-step plan was devised to dismantle these powers—militarily and economically—while securing economic dominance over the Gulf states through the hollowing out of their political systems. The results are now clear: the Iraqi and Syrian armies have been destroyed, Egypt's military has been neutralized, and even Hezbollah's capabilities have been significantly degraded. Now, the assault has reached the core of the Resistance Axis—Iran—which is under intense Israeli military attack using a wide range of advanced weaponry. This aggression is met with deafening silence from the Arab and Islamic worlds, with only timid, ineffective statements—except for the honorable stance of the Republic of Yemen, which continues to rain missiles and drones on the Zionist entity in solidarity. Those who turn a blind eye to the dangers of the U.S.-Israeli colonial project will not escape its consequences, no matter how long it takes. The goal isn't merely military destruction—it includes full economic and energy resource control, especially in the Gulf, which is now firmly in America's grasp, subject to financial blackmail without the ability to resist. The colonial powers are fully aware of the Arab region's immense geopolitical significance, its untapped wealth, and its dense population—ideal for exploitation as cheap labor or a consumer market for Western products. That's why they have sought to create a 'New Middle East' that tightens their grip on this vital area through all available means. It is evident that the implementation of this project has reached its final stages: the attempt to destroy Iran's military and nuclear capabilities and seize control of its oil resources. What is most regrettable is the submissive posture of Arab rulers, who bury their heads in the sand like ostriches—acting as if what is happening around them is of no concern. But the truth is, the danger will inevitably reach them if they don't wake up from their slumber and realize the magnitude of the conspiracy surrounding them. Whatsapp Telegram Email Print
Memri
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Memri
Khomeini's Grandson On Hizbullah TV: Freedom Is A Core Iranian Value; Iran Was 'Subordinate' To Nasrallah – He Set Resistance Axis Policy
On June 6, 2025, Ali Ahmad Khomeini, grandson of the leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, appeared on Al-Manar TV (Hizbullah–Lebanon). He spoke about the core values of the Iranian people, saying that Iranians insist on the freedom to express their views, even when those views conflict with the official position of the state or with foreign powers. Khomeini explained that, whether or not it is fully realized, freedom of expression remains the Iranians' slogan. He added that when people say the Islamic Revolution still lives in the hearts of Iranians, it means that even its critics and rivals have not produced a more compelling slogan than that of its supporters. Khomeini said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had claimed Hizbullah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah determines the policies of the "Resistance Axis," and he affirmed this statement saying that Iran was, in fact, "subordinate" to Nasrallah and described it as being "at the tail of the Resistance and Hassan Nasrallah." Ali Ahmad Khomeini: "The Iranians in particular are incapable of living in humiliation. This applies to most Islamic nations, but the Iranians are exceptional in this regard. Independence is very important to them. It's like oxygen, like air. The second thing is the freedom to be able to say what I want, even if it clashes with the position of the state or with domestic and foreign powers." Reporter: "The West portrays it as if there is no such freedom in Iran. The opposite is true." Khomeini: "Right, right..." Reporter: "This is what distinguishes the Iranians..." Khomeini: "What I want to say is that this is our slogan. In some cases, we have success, and in some cases not. But this is our slogan. When we say that the Revolution still lives in the hearts of the Iranians, it means that our dissenters and rivals do not have a better slogan than ours. [...] "[Netanyahu] said: 'We knew that the policies were decided by Nasrallah.' He said this to Trump. It means that the policies of the Resistance Axis in the region were in the hands of Hassan Nasrallah, and Iran was subordinate to Hassan Nasrallah. I know that this is true. Netanyahu was right." Reporter: "So the Islamic Republic leaves the decision to the people it supports..." Khomeini: "Yes." Reporter: "It leaves them the decision to confront the occupation the way they see fit." Khomeini: "We have fulfilled our minimal obligation. We were at the tail of the Resistance and Hassan Nasrallah."
Asharq Al-Awsat
06-06-2025
- Politics
- Asharq Al-Awsat
The Houthi Alternative for Lebanon
The Houthis resemble a boxer who, whenever he thinks he is about to strike his opponent, finds himself on the receiving end of devastating blows. However, despite his broken nose, gouged-out eye, and the blood pouring from his face, he refuses to leave the ring. Such behavior is met with glorification and veneration by the Resistance Axis. Per the Axis's worldview, the Houthis' determination to remain in the ring under such conditions brings them honor and dignity while standing up for and in solidarity with Gaza. As for the actual achievements that reward the Houthis for sacrificing their country and people, they amount to little more than launching a missile that is usually intercepted, instigating air raid sirens in Israel, sending people to shelters for an hour, or at most, threatening maritime shipping routes... all "for Palestine's sake" of course! Results, in any case, are unimportant; what matters is their effort, initiative, and intent. Every day, a different spokesperson for Hezbollah or its friends in the Axis rears his head to denounce the Lebanese state's failure to fulfill its duties and its capitulation to occupation. This slander is usually paired with smears against any bet on confronting Israel in the political or diplomatic arenas. With the party itself reeling from a painful military setback, the Lebanese army unequipped for such conflicts, and the overwhelming majority of the Lebanese people opposed to a war they believe is futile, the Houthi alternative is precisely what these slanderers are proposing. That is, the only appropriate course of action is to show little regard for the lives of our own people as we perform "solidarity" with Gaza and Palestine without actually doing anything to alleviate the suffering of Gazans or any Palestinians. On top of that, it would entail Lebanon would be reinvented into a pariah in its region and the world, just like the enclave in Yemen that Houthis govern in strange ways. Houthiism means, among other things, salvaging a pretense of heroic glory from the failure and fragmentation engendered by national division, civil war, and starvation. Thus, it is the attempt to derive strength - or something that resembles it - from weakness that cannot be hidden or denied. This belligerent disposition with a suicidal dimension was born of the wretched phenomenon of regimes that can only survive through war. If the war eventually wipes them out, they die martyrs in a death that is choreographed as heroic. There might be another implicit dimension: defending a world of the past that cannot be revived - in this case, the Mutawakkilite Kingdom that many Houthis died defending when it was overthrown by a military coup in 1962. Also in defense of a dead world and past, the Japanese novelist Yukio Mishima ended his life in 1970, with a heroic ritual suicide driven by his loyalty to the old Japan that had been "polluted" by modernization and Westernization. Leading four others in a suicide mission, he launched a failed coup he had deludedly believed could restore his country's divine past. When he failed in this attempt that had always been bound to fail, he launched into a tirade and disemboweled himself. There was also collective suicide at the "People's Temple" in Jonestown, Guyana, in 1978. There was a desire to abide by a religious cult's doctrines, and that desire was pushed to its extreme conclusion. More than 900 people perished, many of them children who were poisoned in order "to please God." These mythological visions of the world diminish the importance of clinging to life and pursuing a better model. The monster or evil is lying in wait, undeterred by politics, diplomacy, or anything else we can do. Thus, the only thing left to do is to scream "Death is sweet," exactly as the Houthis have done and continue to do. As they count down to a death presented as heroic, the Houthis are turning the territory they control into a sacrifice at the altar of the Iranian regime, the supreme totem whose interests one should die defending. As such, advocating the Houthi alternative for Lebanon amounts to calling on its people to die for the Iranian state's interests and several other crazy considerations. Hezbollah, when it was powerful, founded this school of thought that the Houthis subscribed to, so much so that they are now leading the race of the Resistance Axis' Arab factions toward gratuitous death. The fact remains that advocating for the Houthi alternative - with all the violence, poverty, and sacrifice that comes with it - also entails spreading an alarmist consciousness that convinces us that we must confront an imminent and unavoidable existential threat. That is how causality and the notion that every occurrence happens for some reason, are replaced with belief in an essentialized enemy that will inevitably attack and invade us, be it after a "support war" or without one. The fact is that this form of mythological thinking has deep roots. The latest war has only pushed it to a more acute, dramatic, and dangerous place. The Lebanese have been offered several models to follow over the decades. The Baathists suggested models they had set up in Syria and Iraq. The models proposed by the communists ranged from South Yemen to Bulgaria to North Korea. Of course, the Khomeinist model in Iran remains the ideal one championed by the Khomeninists. The difference between the Houthi alternative and those of the past might be that this time, death is incomparably more certain and faster.
