Middle East & North Africa / Comment
Lebanon: facing another wave of destruction?
13/05/2008 By Mariano Aguirre Ernst
Lebanon once again finds itself in the grips of a violent crisis, with confrontations between Hezbollah and its allies, on one side, and the government, formed of Druze, Maronite and other groups, supported by the United States and France, on the other.
While the parliament is paralysed and the political forces can’t seem to find any common ground in selecting a president, Hezbollah has responded to restrictive measures imposed by the government at the beginning of May with an offensive in Beirut.
Hezbollah’s intention is to show its political and military strength, and to attain a greater level of power in a future government. But a section of Lebanon’s Christian community, along with the United States, France, Saudi Arabia and Israel, don’t want that to happen.
They are worried that this Shia group, along with Iran and Syria, will gain greater influence. Washington has announced that it will supply more military aid to the Lebanese Army, which for the time being remains neutral. Some analysts fear that this action will sharpen tensions and push the country towards another civil war, however.
The latest wave of violence in Lebanon shows the limitations of organising the state along confessional lines, and the weight of other countries, from the United States and France to Syria and Iran, along with Israel, in the country’s destiny. Mariano Aguirre analyses the roots of the confrontations and the dangers they represent for the region.
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Keywords
Conflict Gaza Strip and West Bank Israel Lebanon Middle EastBio author: Mariano Aguirre Ernst
Mariano Aguirre has been Director of the Centro de Investigación para la Paz, in Madrid, and Coordinator of programmes on peace and conflicts at the Ford Foundation, in New York. Mariano Aguirre publishes articles in various media in Spain and internationally such as OpenDemocracy, Le monde diplomatique, El Correo, La Vanguardia, Maniere de voir, AlertNet, Enjeux Internationaux, Temas, El País, Política Exterior, Debate, BBC World Service, Radio Netherland, Radio Nacional de España, Radio France International, Mediterranean Politics and CNN Spain.
