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Hezbollah’s Last Fig Leaf | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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I hold no doubts about the treachery and sectarianism of Hezbollah and the danger that it poses; however, there are those who fail to acknowledge reality until after the axe falls, as the saying goes. We have seen and heard some of the shocked reactions to Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah after the May 7 coup in Beirut and today, most people are shocked by Hezbollah and its agents’ real objectives.

As soon as the idea of Israeli withdrawal from the Shebaa Farms surfaced, Iranian-affiliated Hezbollah became enraged and stated that Israeli withdrawal from the land would not mean that Hezbollah would disarm. If Israel does withdraw from the Shebaa Farms, even if the controversy surrounding its identity remains, then why does Hezbollah need weapons? Are Nasrallah’s weapons required for any other purposes? This is probably the case.

In order to understand Nasrallah’s objectives one should look at the comments made by a senior Iraqi official who stated that Iranian-affiliated Hezbollah, the Lebanese branch, acts as if it is a neighboring state to Iraq. Suffice it to mention the last speech delivered by Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah during which he boasted about being part of the Waliyat-e-Faqih [Guardianship of the Jurists] party in front of Iraqis and discussed their internal affairs.

Yet there is more; last Saturday, Nawaf al Moussawi, Hezbollah’s head of international affairs used a threatening tone in what could have been considered a declaration of sectarian war in Lebanon to the extent that he promised his opponents that they would not be able to escape the capital since Hezbollah would not accept any Lebanese security or military official that it did not trust.

This means that Hezbollah is investing in its coup and continues to challenge and humiliate its Sunni opponents in Beirut in spite of the Doha Agreement. The requirement that Hezbollah must be able to trust military and security leaders, the opposition’s desire to take the finance ministry and in the case that the foreign ministry is given to our brother Mr. Nabih Berri, means that Hezbollah would have taken the powers of presidency and premiership on top of the Chamber of Deputies of course.

In consideration of the above, all that would be left would be to create the post of envoy to the Supreme Guide within the Lebanese premiership and Lebanon would be transformed into a division of the Islamic Republic of Iran. This is not sarcasm; this is the reality that is taking shape on the ground.

It is enough to mention here the warning given by Ahmad El Assad, the founder of the Lebanese Option Gathering in protest against the conduct of some individuals affiliated to Iran’s Hezbollah. He said “In spite of our differences of opinion, such behavior is not representative of our values as Shia.” In a warning to Hassan Nasrallah, he said, “Lebanon is still and will always be a diverse place with differing viewpoints. It has not and will never turn into Iran.”

Therefore if Israel does withdraw from the Shebaa Farms − even if it remains under the protection of the United Nations until the issue is resolved between Syria and Lebanon, which in itself is more complex than Israeli occupation − this would be equivalent to the falling of the last fig leaf, which would expose Hezbollah and the deception of Nasrallah’s concern for Lebanon.