Recent Appearances...

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Recent Appearances...

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Ex-Mustaqbal official clenches Beirut municipal seat from rival, broad coalition

2025-05-21

[NAHARNET] al-Mustaqbal
... the Future Movement, political party led by Saad Hariri...

... the Future Movement, political party led by Saad Hariri...
Movement's former Beirut coordinator Mahmoud al-Jamal, a retired brigadier general, has managed to clench a seat on Beirut's new municipal council, preventing a list comprising most political parties from winning all 24 seats.

Al-Jamal's win came at the expense of Elie Andrea, a Greek Orthodox member of the rival list who was backed by Greek Orthodox Metropolitan of Beirut Elias Audi.

Andrea was the subject of ''dismay, especially among Greek Orthodox voters, which led to the redaction of his name by voters due to his bad performance as a member of the outgoing municipal council,'' the Nidaa al-Watan newspaper reported on Tuesday.

Andrea had also faced a social media campaign against him prior to the elections against the backdrop of his dispute with outgoing municipal chief Jamal Itani, Asharq al-Awsat newspaper reported.

This is the first time in decades that sees Moslems outnumbering Christians in the municipal council. The country's rival political parties had formed an electoral alliance in Beirut under the excuse of preserving Christian-Moslem parity.

Political rivals such as Hezbollah and the Lebanese Forces
A Christian political party founded by Bashir Gemayel, who was then bumped off when he was elected president of Leb...
came together to form the list, which also comprised the Amal Movement, the Kataeb Party, the Free Patriotic Movement
Despite its name a Christian party allied with Hizbullah, neither free nor particularly patriotic...
, al-Ahbash, the Tashnag Party
Socialist party representing the Armenian diaspora in Leb. They're Christians, but they try to remain neutral, which means they get shot at without shooting back...
, the Hunchak Party, the Progressive Socialist Party and MP Fouad Makhzoumi.

Al-Jamal's list was backed by MP Nabil Bader and the Jamaa Islamiya and apparently received votes from Mustaqbal supporters.

Four other lists were also formed in the capital, including one by the Beirut Madinati civil society group, which won one third of the capital's votes in the 2016 polls.

Voter turnout reached only 21% in Beirut, which has historically witnessed similar low turnout levels.

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Muslim-Christian parity preserved in Beirut Municipality as list backed by main political parties wins

2025-05-20

[NAHARNET] A list backed by most political parties won all 24 seats of Beirut's municipality on Sunday, maintaining Christian-Moslem parity on the capital's municipal council.

Political rivals such as Hezbollah and the Lebanese Forces
A Christian political party founded by Bashir Gemayel, who was then bumped off when he was elected president of Leb...
came together to form the list, arguing that such a temporary coalition was necessary to preserve equal Christian-Moslem power-sharing.

The list was also backed by the Amal Movement, the Kataeb Party, the Free Patriotic Movement
Despite its name a Christian party allied with Hizbullah, neither free nor particularly patriotic...
, al-Ahbash, the Tashnag Party
Socialist party representing the Armenian diaspora in Leb. They're Christians, but they try to remain neutral, which means they get shot at without shooting back...
, the Hunchak Party and MP Fouad Makhzoumi.

A rival list was formed by MP Nabil Bader, the Jamaa Islamiya and a figure who was considered close to al-Mustaqbal
... the Future Movement, political party led by Saad Hariri...

... the Future Movement, political party led by Saad Hariri...
Movement.

Four other lists were also formed in the capital, including one by the Beirut Madinati civil society group, which won one third of the capital's votes in the 2016 polls.

Voter turnout reached 21% in Beirut, 44.57% in Zahle, 41.11% in West Bekaa, 37.70% in Rashaya, 34.15% in Hermel and 48.88% in Baalbek.

The Lebanese Forces meanwhile announced its victory in the Zahle municipal polls against a list backed by all the other political forces and families in an electoral battle in which the Free Patriotic Movement gave its supporters the freedom to vote for either list.

LF leader Samir Geagea
....Geagea was imprisoned by the Syrians and their puppets for 11 years in a dungeon in the third basement level of the Lebanese Ministry of Defense. He was released after the Cedar Revolution in 2005....
hailed a ''major victory'' in the city, saying ''Zahle has chosen progress, change, civilization, illusory sovereignty, deaders and Leb
Leb

...The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers...
A Hezbollah front man meanwhile said the party and its ally the Amal Movement won in the city of Baalbek, the city of Hermel and in 19 towns in the Bekaa.

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Main political parties agree on coalition list for Beirut municipal elections — Naharnet

2025-05-07

[NAHARNET] The country's main political parties have agreed on forming a unified electoral list for Beirut's municipal vote, al-Akhbar newspaper reported on Tuesday.

''A meeting was held yesterday at MP Fouad Makhzoumi's home in the presence of representatives of parties and Beiruti figures, which resulted in an agreement on forming a coalition list in Beirut,'' the daily said.

The list will comprise candidates nominated by Hezbollah, the Amal Movement, the Free Patriotic Movement
Despite its name a Christian party allied with Hizbullah, neither free nor particularly patriotic...
, the Lebanese Forces
A Christian political party founded by Bashir Gemayel, who was then bumped off when he was elected president of Leb...
, the Kataeb Party, al-Ahbash, the Tashnag Party
Socialist party representing the Armenian diaspora in Leb. They're Christians, but they try to remain neutral, which means they get shot at without shooting back...
and the Hunchak Party, the newspaper added. MP Nabil Bader and the Jamaa Islamiya meanwhile stayed outside the coalition, al-Akhbar said.

''Over the past hours, Bader contacted a number of figures trying to convince them to join a list that he intends to form in the face of the political forces' list, but he is facing difficulty in convincing these figures, who believe that it will be a lost battle,'' the daily added.

The Beirut Madinati civil society coalition, which garnered one third of the votes in 2016, is meanwhile expected to form a third list.

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Lebanon's New President: An American Wedge into a Weakened 'Axis of Resistance'

2025-01-10

Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
by Leonid Tsukanov

[REGNUM] After several years of political vacuum, Lebanon's parliament has elected a new president. The post was taken by former Lebanese army commander Joseph Aoun. He replaced his namesake, General Michel Aoun, who left the post in October 2022.

“Aoun the Second,” as some regional publications jokingly call him, is considered a creature of Washington and a “living instrument” with which the White House plans to unravel the protracted crisis in the Middle East.

ATTEMPT NUMBER 13
For more than two years, Lebanon has been in a state of crisis, both economic and political. Since General Aoun's retirement, members of the Lebanese parliament have met more than a dozen times to approve a successor, but behind-the-scenes disagreements have prevented the government vacuum from being overcome each time.

Some complications were added by the fact that, according to the National Pact adopted in 1943, the president is elected from among the Maronite Christians. The position of prime minister is invariably occupied by a Sunni, and the speaker of parliament by a Shiite.

This is done in order to balance Lebanon's motley ethno-confessional palette and keep the country from sliding into another period of fragmentation. Although Muslims have served as president at least five times since the pact was adopted, no one has dared to completely upset the balance of power.

By February 2023, the "final list" of candidates for the presidential post had been formed. In addition to Commander-in-Chief Aoun, it included the director of the International Monetary Fund's branch in the Middle East and Central Asia, Jihad Azour, and former MP Salah Hannin.

However, Aoun quickly became the unofficial leader, especially after his candidacy was publicly supported by the heavyweight of Lebanese politics, the leader of the Christian center-right Marada party, Suleiman Frangieh. By giving up his presidential aspirations in favor of Aoun, he gave him a serious advantage in the race.

At the same time, Aoun, even being the only real candidate for the presidential seat and the absolute leader of the "final list", was able to win only on the second attempt. In the first round, he collected only 71 parliamentary votes out of the 86 required. The remaining parliamentarians either submitted blank ballots (which symbolizes a public expression of no confidence in the candidate) or spoiled them.

Only the thirteenth session put an end to the protracted presidential race, but this did not reduce the political differences.

A FRAGILE BALANCE OF INTERESTS
Since Aoun is considered a Western-oriented figure, his appointment to the presidency is expectedly not to the liking of pro-Iranian forces. The Shiite parties Hezbollah and Amal demonstratively submitted blank ballots, thus emphasizing their contempt for the “pro-American figure.”

The Free Patriotic Movement (FPM), led by Aoun the First (Michel Aoun), acted in a similar manner. However, in the case of the FPM, the hostility towards the commander-in-chief is connected with his excessive focus on cooperation with Saudi Arabia. The Lebanese, not without reason, consider the Saudis their regional competitors and are suspicious of Riyadh's "excessive involvement" in the country's affairs. In this sense, the FPM and the Shiite parties acted as tactical allies.

However, Washington managed to overcome the resistance of Aoun's opponents rather quickly. Especially since big stakes were placed on the figure of the commander-in-chief.

The US hopes to use Aoun’s hands not only to weaken Iran’s influence in a single Arab country, but also to push Lebanon toward a gradual “détente” with Israel according to a scenario that is advantageous to Washington; to try to drive a wedge into the weakened “Axis of Resistance.”

Considering that Aoun bases his rhetoric on the theses “Lebanon is for the Lebanese” and “the army is the country’s support,” ending the confrontation with Tel Aviv could well be presented as a contribution to national security and a step toward fully normalizing relations. Even considering that Lebanon’s status as a “hostile state” is enshrined in Israeli law.

In a sense, the new Lebanese president may repeat the trajectory of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, who was the first to decide to normalize relations with the Jewish state, even against public opinion. In exchange for such steps, Washington is ready to multiply investments in Lebanese state institutions and the economy.

Aoun's appearance on the political map of Lebanon is partly to Israel's advantage.

Moreover, the former commander-in-chief had previously, willy-nilly, played along with Tel Aviv by slowing down the deployment of government troops in the south of the country during the escalation between Hezbollah and Israel. Israeli forces, in turn, took advantage of Beirut's delay and strengthened their positions, which subsequently forced Hezbollah units to retreat deeper into Lebanese territory.

Now Aoun is ready to move forward and seek the disarmament of Shiite militias. In his first statement, he hinted at an intention to seek “the exclusive right of the state to bear arms,” indicating a desire to limit the military activity of Hezbollah and its allies.

The ambitious plans of the former commander-in-chief have already met with the support of high-ranking Israeli officials, in particular, Foreign Minister Gideon Saar.

On the other hand, given the strong polarization of Lebanese society, Aoun's initiatives could have the opposite effect. Limiting the freedom of action of Shiite forces, coupled with rapprochement with Israel and the United States, could provoke a deepening of the domestic political crisis, which would push forces "offended" by the results of the last elections to change the balance of power in their favor.

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Hezbollah made even weaker by Assad toppling in Syria — Naharnet

2024-12-15

[NAHARNET] A severely hobbled Hezbollah was in no position to help defend former Syrian President Bashir al-Assad, a longtime ally, from the lightning-fast insurgency that toppled him. With Assad gone, the Death Eater group based in Leb
...an Iranian satrapy until recently ruled by Hassan Nasrallah situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozen flavors of Christians, plus Armenians, Georgians, and who knows what else? It is the home of the original Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers...
is even weaker.

Hezbollah was dealt a major blow during 14 months of war with Israel. The toppling of Assad, who had strong ties to Iran, has now crippled its ability to bounce back by cutting off a vital weapons-smuggling route through Syria.

Hezbollah officials are deeply concerned but defiant.

"What is happening in Syria is a major, dangerous and new change, and to know why this happened needs evaluation," Hassan Fadlallah, a Lebanese politician who represents Hezbollah's political wing, said during a speech at a funeral for bully boyz killed by Israel. "Whatever is happening in Syria, despite its dangers, will not weaken us."

Analysts say the diminishment of Hezbollah will have big consequences for Lebanon, where for decades it has been a major political player — and for Iran, which has relied on the group as one of several proxy forces projecting power across the Middle East. It is also a game-changer for Israel, whose nemesis on its northern border is now at its most vulnerable point in decades.

TIES TO SYRIA INFLUENCED THE RISE AND FALL OF HEZBOLLAH'S POWER
The Assad dynasty, which ruled Syria for half a century with an iron fist, played a crucial role in empowering Hezbollah, which was founded in the early 1980s by Iranian advisers who came through Syria. In addition to being a conduit for Iranian weapons, Syria also was a place where Hezbollah trained fighters and manufactured its own weapons.

As Hezbollah grew more powerful, it became a force Assad could rely on for protection in times of crisis. Hezbollah sent thousands of fighters to bolster Assad's forces when a civil war broke out in 2011.

As ~~bandidos~~ krazed killers swept across Syria in early December and took the city of Homs — a stone's throw from a Syrian border town where Hezbollah had a presence — many expected the bully boyz to put up a fierce fight. After all, they did just that in 2013, preventing Assad's opponents from advancing into Damascus.

This time, Hezbollah was in disarray. Many of its brass hats, including longtime leader Sayyed
Sayyed

...Arabic term meaning your/his lordship. Groveling in His Exalted Presence is encouraged...
His Eminence Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah
...The late, lamented satrap of the Medes and the Persians in Leb...>
, were killed in Israeli ~~Arclight~~ airstrike
...KABOOM!...
s. And months of Israeli bombardment destroyed much of its military infrastructure. With Syria's key international allies, Russia and Iran, on the sidelines, Hezbollah withdrew, and Assad was ousted quickly.

"The fall of the regime marks the end of Iran's arms in Syria and Lebanon," said Lt. Col. Fares al-Bayoush, a Syrian army defector who fought in the civil war against Assad's forces and Hezbollah until 2017, when he moved to ~~The Sick Man of Europe~~ Turkey
...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire...
.

LEBANON BEGINS TO GRAPPLE WITH HEZBOLLAH'S 'NEW REALITY'
In Lebanon, the sapping of Hezbollah's strength has given the army the opportunity to reassert control it had ceded, especially along its southern border. A U.S.-brokered ceasefire between the Death Eater group and Israel states that Hezbollah should have no armed presence along that border and it has led to growing calls within Lebanon for the group's disarmament.

"To Hezbollah, it's game over," Samir Geagea
....Geagea was imprisoned by the Syrians and their puppets for 11 years in a dungeon in the third basement level of the Lebanese Ministry of Defense. He was released after the Cedar Revolution in 2005....
, who leads the Christian Lebanese Forces
A Christian political party founded by Bashir Gemayel, who was then bumped off when he was elected president of Leb...
Party, said in a statement on Sunday, hours after ~~bandidos~~ krazed killers took Damascus. "Sit with the Lebanese military to end your status as an gang, and transform yourselves into a political party."

But Hezbollah's longtime sway in the political arena in Lebanon also faces a major challenge.

Many in Lebanon are angry with the group. Critics say Hezbollah violated its promise to use its weapons only to defend Lebanon when it began firing rockets into Israel last year, the day after Hamas
..the braying voice of Islamic Resistance®,...
attacked Israel.

Nearly than 4,000 people were killed in Lebanon during the war with Israel, according to the country's health ministry. Entire towns and villages where Hezbollah members and supporters lived have been flattened. More than 1 million people have been displaced, and the country's economy — which was in bad shape before the war — is in a deep hole.

"With the (Syrian) regime gone, Hezbollah in Lebanon faces an entirely new reality," said Firas Maksad, of the Middle East Institute.

Maksad said many Lebanese leaders have yet to grasp the magnitude of the change that has taken place. Even some onetime allies of Hezbollah in parliament have begun distancing themselves from the group.

Jebran Bassil, a politician who represents the Free Patriotic Movement
Despite its name a Christian party allied with Hizbullah, neither free nor particularly patriotic...
, Lebanon's other major Christian party, said Hezbollah's loss of a weapons pipeline from Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate ~~Jews~~ ~~Zionists~~ Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
could help Lebanon extract itself from regional conflict.

"Hezbollah should focus on internal affairs and not the wider region," Bassil, a former ally of Hezbollah, said.

It may have no choice but to narrow its ambitions. With the fall of Assad, Iran has lost control of a corridor of land that stretched through Iraq and Syria all the way to the Mediterranean, and which gave it an unimpeded route to supply Hezbollah.

"They can maybe fly in some things and smuggle some things, but that's not gonna be on the same scale, not even close," said Aron Lund, a Syria expert with Century International, a New York-based think tank.

For Israel, breaking Iran's regional network has been a major goal, though it is wary over Islamic bully boyz among the ~~bandidos~~ krazed killers who toppled Assad. Israel on Sunday moved troops into a demilitarized buffer zone with Syria by the Israel-held Golan Heights in what it called a temporary security measure.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Assad's fall a "historic day," saying it was "the direct result of our forceful action against Hezbollah and Iran, Assad's main supporters."

Link

-Short Attention Span Theater-

NYT: Trump’s pick for MidEast adviser isn’t a billionaire mogul as believed, but the CEO of Nigerian truck company

2024-12-14

[IsraelTimes] US President-elect Donald Trump
...His ancestors didn't own any slaves...
’s pick for Middle East adviser Massad Boulos is not the billionaire business mogul that many believed him to be, and is in fact the CEO of a small company that sells trucks and heavy machinery in Nigeria, the New York Times

...which still proudly claims Walter Duranty's Pulitzer prize...
reports.

Boulos, whose son is married to Trump’s daughter Tiffany, campaigned on behalf of Trump in the run-up to the elections, helping him drum up Arab American support amid the war in Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response...
and Israel’s campaign against Hezbollah in Leb
Leb

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Lebanese remember bloody past after Assad fall — Naharnet

2024-12-10

[NAHARNET] Across Leb
Leb

...an Iranian satrapy until recently ruled by Hassan Nasrallah situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozen flavors of Christians, plus Armenians, Georgians, and who knows what else? It is the home of the original Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers...
, the Middle East, and beyond, the fall of Syria's authoritarian government at the hands of Islamist-led rebels set off waves of jubilation, trepidation and alarm.

Many Lebanese exulted at the overthrow of the Syrian leader while others worried about more instability rocking a region in turmoil.

Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati called for a strict control of the border with Syria and for distancing Lebanon from the developments there. He urged the Lebanese "of all affiliations" to be "wise" and "avoid emotional reactions."

Mikati also asked Secretary-General of Council of Ministers Judge Mahmoud Makiya to communicate with the National Commission for the Missing and Forcibly Disappeared Persons in Lebanon and with the relevant authorities regarding the release of Lebanese prisoners from Syrian prisons.

- LEBANESE IN SYRIAN PRISONS -
During 15 years of civil war in Lebanon, an estimated 17,000 people went missing. Many were held captive or were killed in detention centers operated by Syrian forces in Lebanon and Syria, but their fates remain unknown.

Since a Lebanese man, who was missing for 40 years, was freed by Syrian rebels from a prison in Hama last week, many Lebanese families are demanding to know the fate of their loved ones who are thought to be detained in Syrian prisons since Lebanon's civil war when Syrian troops were in Lebanon.

- GEAGEA SAYS 'NOTHING WORSE THAN ASSAD' -
Lebanese Forces
A Christian political party founded by Bashir Gemayel, who was then bumped off when he was elected president of Leb...
leader Samir Geagea
....Geagea was imprisoned by the Syrians and their puppets for 11 years in a dungeon in the third basement level of the Lebanese Ministry of Defense. He was released after the Cedar Revolution in 2005....
congratulated all Lebanese on the fall of Bashir al-Assad's regime, saying that "over the past 50 years, the regime of Hafez and Bashir al-Assad was the biggest obstacle to the building of a state in Lebanon."

"It's impossible for the situation in Syria to be worse than Assad. There is noting worse," Geagea said.

- JUMBLAT SAYS 'JUSTICE ACHIEVED' -
Former Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Wally Jumblat
...Druze politician, head of the Progressive Socialist Party, who's been on every side in Leb at least four times. He'll sell you his friends for a dollar, but family comes higher because of shipping and handling...
saluted the Syrian people and celebrated Assad's ouster "after a lengthy wait."

Jumblat also called former PM Saad Hariri
...Second son of Rafik Hariri, the Leb PM who was assassinated in 2005. He has was prime minister in his own right from 2009 through early 2011. He was born in Riyadh to an Iraqi mother and graduated from Georgetown University. He managed his father's business interests in Riyadh until his father's assassination. When his father died he inherited a fortune of some $4.1 billion, which won't do him much good if Hizbullah has him bumped off, too....
and told him that by Assad's fall "justice was achieved" for his slain father Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and other March 14 figures.

Al-Mustaqbal
... the Future Movement, political party led by Saad Hariri...

... the Future Movement, political party led by Saad Hariri...
Movement, founded by Hariri, for its part, congratulated the Syrian people in a statement and called on the Lebanese to preserve national unity.

- ASSASSINATIONS BLAMED ON SYRIA -
Hariri was assassinated in 2005 by a bomb in Beirut, blamed on Syria and Hezbollah. His liquidation sparked protests that ousted Syrian troops from Lebanon. Following Hariri's killing, several anti-Syrian figures were assassinated, including Samir Qassir, George Hawi, Gebran Tueni, Pierre Amine Gemayel, Antoine Ghanem and Walid Eido. Others escaped liquidation attempts including Elias Mur, May Chidiac, and Samir Shehade.

Jumblat's father, Kamal Jumblat was assassinated in 1977 in his car near Baakline by unidentified button men suspected to be members of the pro-Syrian faction of the Lebanese Syrian Social Nationalist Party, in collaboration with the Ba'ath Party.

In 1982, President Bashir Gemayel was killed with 26 other politicians by a member of the Syrian Social Nationalist Party who detonated a bomb from a few miles away using a remote detonator. He said he killed Gemayel because of his collaboration with Israel, which invaded Lebanon in 1982.

- GEMAYEL HAILS 'TYRANT FALL' -
Kataeb leader and Bashir's nephew Sami Gemayel wrote on X that "the criminal tyrant has fallen". "But Lebanon remains and the Kataeb remains."

He added that the names of his uncle Bashir, his brother Pierre Gemayel, and other deaders "stand tall, pulsating with freedom, illusory sovereignty and independence."

- BASSIL HOPES IT'S FOR THE GOOD OF LEBANON AND SYRIA -
Free Patriotic Movement
Despite its name a Christian party allied with Hizbullah, neither free nor particularly patriotic...
leader Jebran Bassil hoped that the developments would be for the good of Syria and Lebanon and lead to a swift return of displaced Syrians to their country and to "positive and balanced relations" between the two countries.

- SYRIA STABILITY IMPACTS LEBANON -
Son of Hezbollah's presidential candidate and Assad's friend Suleiman Franjieh, Marada MP Tony Franjieh hoped, in a statement posted on the X platform, for a peaceful transfer of power that would preserve the country's stability and protect the rights of all Syrians.

"The stability of Lebanon has always been deeply affected by the stability of Syria," Franjieh said.

- BLOW TO HEZBOLLAH -
For Hezbollah, who had long used Syria as its key conduit for weapons and supplies from Iran, Assad's fall could further weakens the group, after the staggering losses it suffered in its own recent war with Israel.

"What's happening in Syria is a major, dangerous and new transformation," Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah said.

"No one can downplay its impact but we draw our presence and strength from God, from our faith before anything else, and from our people — and the existence, presence, formations, capabilities and high competencies of the resistance, despite everything that has been inflicted on it in this war," Fadallah added.

Early in Syria's civil war, when it appeared Assad might be tossed, Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate ~~Jews~~ ~~Zionists~~ Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
and its ally, Hezbollah, rushed fighters to support him. Russia later joined with a scorched earth campaign of ~~Arclight~~ airstrike
...KABOOM!...
s.

For Israel, breaking Iran's regional network has been a major goal, though it is wary over jihadi fighters among the hard boyz who toppled Assad. Israel on Sunday moved troops into a demilitarized buffer zone with Syria by the Israel-held Golan Heights in what it called a temporary security measure.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Assad's fall a "historic day," saying it was "the direct result of our forceful action against Hezbollah and Iran, Assad's main supporters."

Link

Home Front: Politix

Trump says Lebanese-American in-law will be senior aide on Arab and Mideast affairs

2024-12-02

[IsraelTimes] Boulos’s son Michael is married to Trump’s daughter Tiffany. The businessman and lawyer played an integral role in expanding Trump’s support among Arab and Muslim Americans in last month’s election, echoing the GOP leader’s pledge to end wars in Gaza and Lebanon.

Massad Boulos will likely work alongside Steve Witkoff, who Trump last month appointed as his special envoy for the Middle East.

A source familiar with the matter told The Times of Israel that Witkoff will deal more directly with Israel, while Boulos will be Trump’s point-man to Arab countries. The president-elect campaigned on expanding the Abraham Accords that he brokered at the end of his first term, which saw the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco normalize relations with Israel.

Boulus has also served as Trump’s conduit to Paleostinian Authority President the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas
...aka Abu Mazen, a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial. While no Yasser Arafat, he has his own brand of evil, just a little more lowercase....>
, handing over a letter that the latter wrote to the then-Republican nominee condemning the July attempt on his life. Trump sent the letter back to Abbas with a note expressing thanks for the well-wishes.

Boulos then met Abbas in person on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in September, and, earlier this month, coordinated the first phone call between the two leaders in over seven years, during which Abbas congratulated Trump on his election win.

In a Truth Social post announcing the appointment, Trump touted Boulos as a "highly respected leader in the business world, with extensive experience on the international scene."

"He has been a longtime proponent of Republican and Conservative values, an asset to my Campaign, and was instrumental in building tremendous new coalitions with the Arab American Community," Trump continued. "Massad is a dealmaker and an unwavering supporter of PEACE in the Middle East."

It was the second time in recent days that Trump chose the father-in-law of one of his children to serve in his administration.

On Saturday, Trump said that he had picked his son-in-law Jared Kushner’s father, real estate mogul Charles Kushner, to serve as US ambassador to La Belle France.

In recent months, Boulos campaigned for Trump to drum up Lebanese and Arab American support, even as the US-backed Israel’s military campaign against Hezbollah in Leb
Leb

...an Iranian satrapy until recently ruled by Hassan Nasrallah situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozen flavors of Christians, plus Armenians, Georgians, and who knows what else? It is the home of the original Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers...
Boulos has powerful roots in both countries.

His father and grandfather were both figures in Lebanese politics and his father-in-law was a key funder of the Free Patriotic Movement
Despite its name a Christian party allied with Hizbullah, neither free nor particularly patriotic...
, a Christian party aligned with Hezbollah.

Boulos’s son, Michael, and Tiffany Trump were married in an elaborate ceremony at Trump’s Florida Mar-a-Lago Club in November 2022, after getting engaged in the White House Rose Garden during Trump’s first term.

Boulos has been in touch with interlocutors across Lebanon’s multipolar political world, three sources who spoke to him in recent months say, a rare feat in Lebanon, where decades-old rivalries between factions run deep.

Particularly notable is his ability to maintain relations with Hezbollah, they say. The Iranian-backed Shiite terror group has a large number of seats in Lebanon’s parliament and ministers in the government.

Boulos is a friend of Suleiman Frangieh, a Christian ally of Hezbollah and its candidate for Lebanon’s presidency. He is also in touch with the Lebanese Forces
A Christian political party founded by Bashir Gemayel, who was then bumped off when he was elected president of Leb...
Party, a vehemently anti-Hezbollah Christian faction, the sources say, and has ties to independent politicians.

Aron Lund, a fellow at the Century Foundation think tank, said Boulos was well placed to influence Trump’s Middle East policy after playing a small but significant role in expanding Trump’s appeal to Arab American and Moslem voters during the campaign.

"Boulos’s Lebanese political past gives no real indication of a geostrategic or even national vision, but it demonstrates ambition and a set of political allies that will stand out in Trump’s circle like a sore thumb," Lund wrote.

Boulos, a billionaire with extensive business ties in Nigeria, was born in Lebanon, but moved to Texas as a teenager, where he attended the University of Houston, earned a law degree and became a US citizen.

Trump’s election win in Michigan came in part because of Boulos’s help flipping some of the 300,000 Arab Americans and Moslems in the state who overwhelmingly supported Biden in 2020, but opposed Biden’s policies in Israel, Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response...
, and Lebanon, Trump campaign officials and supporters told Rooters.

"Boulos played a big role in the outreach to Moslem voters," said Rabiul Chowdhury, co-founder of Moslems for Trump.

Beginning in September, the Trump campaign held weekly meetings in person and via Zoom with dozens of Arab American and Moslem civic leaders and business executives.

Boulos spent weeks on the ground in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and other states with big Arab American and Moslem populations, assuring audiences in private lunches and dinners that tapped his own connections to Lebanese American businessmen that Trump was committed to ending the wars in the Middle East.

The Trump campaign spent tens of millions of dollars on the effort to mobilize Arab American and Moslem voters, Boulos told Rooters in an interview shortly after the election.

Trump won endorsements from Moslem imams and the Moslem mayor of Hamtramck, another town near bankrupt, increasingly impoverished, reliably Democrat, Detroit
... ruled by Democrats since 1962. A city whose Golden Age included the Purple Gang...
with a large Arab American population, as well as the large Bangladeshi community, and courted Iraqi Americans, Albanian Americans and others.

While the events on the ground in Lebanon played a factor, the economy did too. And conservative Arabs and Moslems were concerned about what they saw as the Democrats
...every time you hear the phrase white people, white supremacy, white anything but paint, you're listening to a Democrat. Ask him/her/it to reimagine something for you; they do that a lot, though not well. They can hear a dog whistle a mile or two away. They invented the spoils system and Tammany Hall, and inspired the addition of the word (Thomas) Nasty to the English language. They want to stop continental drift and repeal the law of unintended side effects...
’ "far-left ideology," including support of transgender rights, Boulos said.

The new role could offer Boulos the kind of political clout he could not achieve in Lebanon. He had a brief run for Lebanon’s parliament in 2018 alongside pro-Hezbollah candidates, but since then he has not consistently aligned himself with any particular party, sources in Lebanon said.

He hails from a Greek Orthodox family. In Lebanon’s sectarian power-sharing system, that would cap his chances at a senior role in government at the level of deputy speaker of parliament. The post of president — the highest Christian role in the country — is reserved for Maronite Catholics.

While he used to travel to Lebanon frequently, he has not visited in the last four years, one of the sources said.

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Having failed to defeat Hezbollah in battle, Israel is looking for apostates and dividing Lebanon

2024-11-20

Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
by Dmitry Polyakov

[REGNUM] A month and a half after the start of the ground operation in Lebanon, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced the start of the second stage. The main goal is to destroy Hezbollah's missile potential.

The Israeli army has made its largest attempt to break into its northern neighbor's territory. At the same time, the Jewish state continues to carry out daily airstrikes on the "land of cedars." Not only the border areas in the south are under fire, but also the Bekaa Valley and the suburbs of Beirut.

However, behind the military component of the operation there are other aspects.

BETTING ON COLLABORATION
As a result of Israeli bombing in the border zone of Lebanon, more than 40 thousand residential buildings in almost 40 settlements have already been destroyed.

There is a price for hosting vicious, genocidal scum who turn out not to be strong or clever enough to carry it off.

It is noteworthy that there are several completely untouched towns in the area. Among them are Rmesh, Ain Ebel, Maroun ar-Ras, Dbel, located in the Bint Jebel region, and al-Klaya in the Marjayoun region. These small towns are populated mainly by Maronite Christians.

In other words, towns that are not hosting the vicious, genocidal scum, etc..

Formally, the reason these cities are not under Israeli attack is the mediation efforts of the Catholic Church. Residents regularly receive assurances from the Apostolic Nuncio (Vatican Ambassador) in Lebanon that the Christian border areas will remain safe. In addition, a diplomatic representative of the Holy See has repeatedly visited the Lebanese-Israeli border since October 7, 2023, including on a humanitarian mission.

But Israel may also have other reasons for leaving Christian cities untouched.

One of the stated goals of the ground operation is to create a buffer zone in southern Lebanon.

Said buffer zone having been defined by Israel as not hosting that vicious, genocidal scum, etc., exactly like those Christian cities/towns.

In the recent past, such a project was already implemented in the form of the so-called "South Lebanon Security Zone", which existed from 1985 to 2000. Formally, it was controlled by the South Lebanon Army (SLA), a paramilitary formation consisting of Maronites, Shiites and Druze. However, in reality, the zone was an Israeli protectorate with a military presence of the IDF.

It is noteworthy that many of the AJL commanders came from the cities of Rmesh, Dbel and Ain Ebel, which remain untouched today. In addition, it is known that the inhabitants of Marun ar-Ras and Klaia collaborated with Israel. It is quite possible that today the Jewish state is again returning to the tactics of interaction with the Maronite population. And there are some prerequisites for this.

Currently, Lebanese society is extremely polarized. There is no single position on the Israeli invasion. One part of the citizens supports the continuation of the resistance, while the other blames Hezbollah for the conflict and supports its disarmament, as well as negotiations with Israel.

This position is most often taken by supporters of right-wing nationalist parties, dominated by the Maronite Kataeb and Lebanese Forces. Moreover, during the Lebanese civil war (1975–1990), prominent Maronite families such as Gemayel and Chamoun briefly collaborated with the Jewish state to achieve their own political goals. Israel’s bet on the Maronites may therefore be a well-founded move.

DESTABILIZATION STRATEGY
Israel's current actions are aimed not only at inflicting a military defeat on Hezbollah, but also at significantly reducing support for the movement. This strategy is being implemented through the internal destabilization of its northern neighbor.

The systematic bombing of southern Lebanon, the Bekaa Valley and the suburbs of Beirut suggests that Israel is seeking to displace more than a million Shiites, which in turn is expected to lead to social tensions in the "Land of the Cedars."

Already, about half a million Lebanese have fled the war to neighboring Syria, and almost 900,000 to the interior of the country. This has immediately caused tensions within Lebanese society. In addition, Israel has also begun to strike Shiite areas in cities where the majority of the population is made up of members of other faiths, which makes them see Shiites as a threat to their security.

…because they are…

Therefore, massive Israeli bombings are aimed not only at the military component, but also indirectly intensify interfaith confrontation.

Another goal the Jewish state likely wants to achieve through its attacks is to reduce support for Hezbollah within Shiite society.

The insight is blinding.

In Lebanon, the Shiite voice is not only Hezbollah, but also the Amal party. It is important to note that there are significant socioeconomic differences between their electorates. The first party has always been the focus of the disadvantaged strata of the population, while the second party has been the focus of the middle class and the bourgeoisie, which has created the image of Amal as a more respectable party in the Lebanese political system.

Does Amal also have a terrorist army, or is that Hezbollah’s special role?

Moreover, the stratification of Shiites also depends on their places of settlement. The Bekaa Valley is generally home to a poorer population. In southern Lebanon, on the contrary, citizens are more affluent. Most of the leaders of the Shiite community also come from this region. Understanding these differences, in recent years Hezbollah has been actively expanding its support base in the south of the country, taking away the electorate from Amal.

However, it is the southerners who have suffered the most in the current conflict. In order not to lose their support, the Party of God is allocating small compensation: $300 for a family of four and $100 for each adult male.

They have the funds for that after that billion dollars of gold and cash was burnt up?

However, these amounts are unlikely to cover all the damage incurred. As a result, there are already signs of discontent in the Shiite community, which may appear in the future.

Another consequence of the Israeli operation was the deepening of differences between Hezbollah's allies. First, tensions increased between Hezbollah and Amal. Following the assassination of Hassan Nasrallah, Amal Secretary General Nabih Berri called for an unconditional ceasefire. His position was supported by Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Druze leader Walid "Wally" Jumblatt.

All three agreed to a cessation of hostilities and the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which calls for the disarmament of Hezbollah and the redeployment of the Lebanese army to the south of the country.

Secondly, Gebran Bassil, the leader of the Free Patriotic Movement, another Hezbollah partner in the March 8 Coalition, also criticized the Shiite party. In his opinion, the “united fronts” strategy chosen by the “Axis of Resistance,” which implies the unification of all pro-Iranian forces against Israel, was a fatal mistake.

It is noticeable that as the conflict grows, Hezbollah's domestic political partners are increasingly distancing themselves from it and advocating for a ceasefire rather than continued resistance. In the current circumstances, the Party of God will be forced to either take their position into account and not put forward excessive conditions in the negotiations, or it will remain in the minority.

Thus, the current Israeli ground operation pursues several goals at once, and the military aspect is only one of them. In a month and a half of military action, the Jewish state was unable to destroy Hezbollah's military potential. However, it managed to change the conditions in which the Shiite movement exercised its power.

Lebanese society is becoming increasingly divided. Hezbollah is losing support among both its political partners and its supporters. Moreover, it no longer has control over the entire south of the country. These factors, rather than military superiority, may be decisive in the current conflict.

Those factors result from the IDF’s military superiority, not separate from it.

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Bassil eulogizes Nasrallah, says only state can protect Lebanon — Naharnet

2024-11-07

[NAHARNET] Free Patriotic Movement
Despite its name a Christian party allied with Hizbullah, neither free nor particularly patriotic...
chief Jebran Bassil has marked 40 days since Israel's killing of Hezbollah leader Sayyed
Sayyed

...Arabic term meaning your/his lordship. Groveling in His Exalted Presence is encouraged...
His Eminence Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah
...The late, lamented satrap of the Medes and the Persians in Leb...>
by publishing a eulogy and political statement in al-Akhbar newspaper.

Lamenting that he ''lost a friend who will not be repeated,'' Bassil noted that only ex-president, FPM founder and his father-in-law General Michel Aoun
...former president of Leb, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hizbullah...
was dearer than Nasrallah to his heart.

''You wanted to avoid war and you believed in your ability to avert it through the deterrence equation, but it chased you and targeted you. You wanted to liberate Jerusalem, betting on the unity of arenas for that, but the capabilities of the Axis (of Resistance®) were smaller than your will,'' Bassil added, addressing Nasrallah.

Much, much smaller.

''Protecting Leb...an Iranian satrapy until recently ruled by Hassan Nasrallah situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozen flavors of Christians, plus Armenians, Georgians, and who knows what else? It is the home of the original Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers...
will remain in our conscience and Israel's occupation of it will remain impossible. But we want to be frank with you as we have always been: that can no longer be achieved without a strong and just state that can lead a defense strategy that preserves all the elements of strength,'' Bassil went on to say.
"Yadda yadda yadda" he added

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Geagea ''flexible'' but not with Berri''s dialogue or Hezbollah''s war

2024-09-09

Lebanese Forces
A Christian political party founded by Bashir Gemayel, who was then bumped off when he was elected president of Leb...
leader Samir Geagea
....Geagea was imprisoned by the Syrians and their puppets for 11 years in a dungeon in the third basement level of the Lebanese Ministry of Defense. He was released after the Cedar Revolution in 2005....
insists on boycotting a presidential dialogue initiated by Parliament Speaker Nabih Knobby Berri

...perennial Speaker of the Lebanese parliament, head of the Amal Shiite party aligned with Hezbollah, a not very subtle sock puppet of the Medes and Persians...
, as Leb

...an Iranian satrapy currently ruled by Hassan Nasrallah situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozen flavors of Christians, plus Armenians, Georgians, and who knows what else? It is the home of the original Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers...
remains without a president since Michel Aoun
...former president of Leb, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hizbullah...
's term ended in October 2022, almost two years ago.

"I am flexible," Geagea said in a radio interview on Thursday night. "But I cannot be flexible about Hezbollah's decision to start a war in south Lebanon," he added, as he dubbed Berri's dialogue anew "unconstitutional".

Geagea said the so-called Axis of Defiance plans to control Lebanon. "As long as it is unable to do it militarily, it will try at all costs to control it politically by electing a president of its choice."

Geagea said he will not describe Hezbollah as a terrorist organization as he hopes to "attract" the group to the Lebanese framework. "The only way to meet with Hezbollah, is when it becomes a Lebanese party with a Lebanese agenda only," Geagea said, adding that ties with Hezbollah cannot be completely cut.

He also said he has a good relation with Hezbollah's ally, Berri, but that he finds the way Berri is dealing with the presidential vote "unacceptable".

On another note, Geagea said that he thinks the Free Patriotic Movement
Despite its name a Christian party allied with Hizbullah, neither free nor particularly patriotic...
's disintegration is "in Lebanon's interest", after two MPs were expelled from the FPM and two others deliberately resigned.

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Ex-FPM MPs meet al-Rahi, discuss ways to ''save the country''

2024-09-06

Deputy Speaker Elias Bou Saab and MPs Ibrahim Kanaan, Alain Aoun and Simon Abi Ramia met Thursday in Diman with Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi.

Bou Saab and Aoun have been recently expelled from the Free Patriotic Movement
Despite its name a Christian party allied with Hizbullah, neither free nor particularly patriotic...
while Abi Ramia and Kanaan have resigned from it.

A rift with FPM chief Jebran Bassil was the main reason behind the departures, with the MPs accusing Bassil of monopolizing decisions and the FPM accusing them of violating the Movement's charter and policies.''

''We came to take the patriarch's blessings to know how we can save the country,'' Kanaan said from Diman.''

''Loyalty is for the cause and we're still in our position and have not changed,'' Kanaan added.

Aoun for his part told MTV that ''those who lack loyalty and have betrayed the cause are the ones hurling insults at us.''

''I call on them to pray and meditate because our work is patriotic,'' Aoun added.

Speaking after the meeting, Kanaan said that ''the first required breakthrough is a presidential breakthrough, via a national alliance that we are seeking to create, in order to rescue Leb
Leb

Link

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