Is Lebanon just like Iraq?

[majorjohn]

Does the United States have any influence over Lebanon? Is the current Prime Minister of Lebanon an American Puppet just like what the hundreds of thousands of protestors are saying? Are the protests which have been going on for over 10 days going to have any effect at all on the government? Seems like the country there is falling to pieces - sort of like what's going on in Iraq; the only difference is, as of yet, there's no civil war in Lebanon- which is good. Will the United States do anything about it?


Aljazeera video on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WrS9uBHVtbg

[Selatius]

1. The Israeli bombing campaign over Lebanon only made Hezbollah stronger, not weaker.

Because of Israel's campaign, which cost the lives of 1500 civilians, Hezbollah now enjoys greater popularity among the people than it ever did. They were seen as the only force out there resisting IDF forces invading southern Lebanon. Olmert was a fool for playing into the hands of Hezbollah.

[majorjohn]

2. Right, but what about the Lebanese government?

Is it sponsored by the United States, which is why the protests are currently taking place?

[RobofSWVA]

3. I always thought it was France...

Going back to the preWWII days I thought France was the one responsible for Lebanon and had the most influence as far as the west goes. I guess that's changed.

[majorjohn]

5. Not according to these people

[Selatius]

4. As far as I know, no. Historically, Lebanon has been a puppet of Syria though.

The problem in Lebanon is really about sectarian differences. Hezbollah always enjoyed more support among Shia than with Sunnis. Sunnis were more likely to disagree with Hezbollah than Shia were.

The civil war in the 1970s/1980s was the result of the Maronite Christians refusal to recognize new demographic realities: That Muslims now are the majority. Because they did not want to hold a new census to determine the government's new makeup, war resulted.

It wasn't just a civil war though. Other countries like Israel and Syria invaded. Israel invaded because the PLO had moved into Southern Lebanon after Jordan's King Hussein booted them out of his country, and Syria invaded because the Maronite Christians had warned that fighting would cut off Syria's access to open waters through Lebanese ports if they didn't come in and stabilize the country.

Today, Hezbollah enjoys support from Syria, which was the opposite case during the war when Syria supported the predominantly Maronite Christian government of the 1970s.

[eridani]

6. A "puppet" of Syria?

It was a friggin' PART of Syria until the French (post WW I) split it from Syria in order to create a country with a Maronite Christian majority. For that reason, Syria has always had a lot of influence there. With so many years of separate history since the, the demographics have changed and there is a lot more ambivalence about Syrian influence. And I thought that another Shi'ite group dominant before Hezbollah had Syrian support as well.

[question everything]

7. And, of course, Lebanon has been a democracy

while Syria a dictatorship.

This is the sad reality world wide. YOu don't have street crime, and "insurrection" and even rallies in dictatorship. But an open democracy is ripe for extreme groups to take advantage of it. This is what the PLO did in the 70s - throwing Lebanon into a 20-year civil war - and this is what Hezbollah has been doing in the past 20 years.

[majorjohn]

8. Not fully democratic though

it's based on a confessional system; the president is required to be a Maronite Christian, the prime minister a Sunni Muslim, and the Speaker of the Parliament a Shi'a Muslim.

[azurnoir]

9. Just what has the US done for Lebanon so far?

The current Lebanese government lost credibility last summer when it's supposed allie, the US sat on it's hands and gave Israel a couple more weeks to bomb. What is happening right now is a direct result, Hezbollah now has support across the board in Lebanon and a civil war is imminent. The sides this time will most likely be Hezbollah vs the Lebanese government. So what happens if Hezbollah becomes the government? Destabilization doesn't even begin to describe it.

A question: What is the relationship between Hezbollah and Hamas?

I am asking because I do not know.

[question everything]

10. The good old "strange bedfellows"

Hamas is Sunni while Hezbollah is Shi'a.

Both are religious parties that are fighting Israel. Hamas is a Palestinian party that won big in the recent Palestinian elections and is a rival for the secular old (and corrupt) PLO that for years, under Arafat, led the Palestinian battle for independence.

Hezbollah is supported by Iran and Syria, again, a religious party that won in the recent Lebanese elections to rival the secular - more or less - other Lebanese parties.

Both have been doing what the official rulers did not: provide medical care and food and schools to the poorest of the poor and while there, also their extreme political view.

Similar methods, similar goals but otherwise two distinct groups.