From: William Gladys <william.gladys@tiscali.co.uk>
Date: Tue, Jan 25, 2011 at 4:33 PM
Subject: Fw: Lebanon: protests as Hizbollah moves to take control of government
To: world_Politics@googlegroups.com
Lebanon: protests as Hizbollah moves to take control of government
Hizbollah has moved to the brink of controlling Lebanon's next government, setting off angry protests and prompting warnings from that its support from the US could be in jeopardy.
Hizbollah is a threat to Israel's security Photo: Reuters
7:00AM GMT 25 Jan 2011
Nearly two weeks after bringing down Lebanon's Western-backed government, the Shia militant group - which is considered a terrorist organisation by Washington - secured support in parliament to name its own candidate for the next prime minister. The victory caps Hizbollah's steady rise over decades from resistance force against Israel to Lebanon's most powerful military and political power.
Protests erupted quickly in areas populated by Hizbollah's Sunni rivals, who declared a "day of rage" to express their rejection of what they called "Persian tutelage" over Lebanon - a reference to Hizbollah's Iranian patrons.
Hizbollah's candidate, billionaire businessman Najib Mikati, was set to clinch the nomination after Hizbollah and its allies lined up the backing of at least 65 of the 128 parliament members.
Hizbollah's Western-backed opponents maintain having an Iranian proxy in control of Lebanon's government would be disastrous and lead to international isolation. The United States, which has poured in $720 million in military aid since 2006, has tried to move Lebanon firmly into a Western sphere and end the influence of Hizbollah, Syria and Iran.
P.J. Crowley, the State Department spokesman, warned that continuing US support for Lebanon would be "problematic" if Hizbollah takes a dominant role in government, though he declined to say what the US would do if Hizbollah's candidate becomes prime minister.
A Hizbollah-led government would also raise tensions with Israel, which fought a devastating 34-day war against the Shia militants in 2006 that left 1,200 Lebanese and 160 Israelis dead. Hizbollah briefly took control of Beirut's streets two years later in sectarian clashes that killed 81 people, angering many who accused the militants of breaking a promise to never use its arsenal against the Lebanese.
Then in 2009, the militant group joined the government with virtual veto power over all its decisions.
Hizbollah brought down that government on Jan. 12 after Prime Minister Saad Hariri refused the group's demand to cease cooperation with a UN-backed tribunal investigating the 2005 assassination of his father, former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
Hizbollah can either form its own government now, leaving Mr Hariri and his allies to become the opposition, or it can try to persuade Mr Hariri to join a national unity government. In a speech on Sunday night, Hizbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah said he favored a unity government.
Mr Hariri has said he will not join a government headed by a Hizbollah-backed candidate.
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Palash Biswas
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