Day By Day

Monday, May 02, 2005

Lebanon, some misgivings

A few days ago I noted [here] that the democratic revolution in Lebanon is far from over and that major problems remained to be addressed. Well, the MSM is finally beginning to notice the same thing. In today's NY Post Peter Brookes writes:
DON'T get too giddy about the "historic" withdrawal of 14,000 Syrian troops from Lebanon last week. It was a terrific sight, indeed, but it was only the tip of the "Syrian influence" iceberg in Lebanon.

The real source of Syrian power in Lebanon isn't the military. On the contrary, it's Syrian intelligence. As the Syrian army marched homeward, thousands of Syrian "spooks" — perhaps as many as 5,000 — remained behind.

After 29 years of holding Lebanon by the throat, Syria isn't going to loosen its iron grip without a struggle. Evicting Syria's "burrowed-in" security apparatus — and influence — from Lebanon isn't going to be easy.

Read the whole thing here.

Basically his concerns are the same is mine:

1) The ominous deception involved in Syria's continuing failure to live up to international agreements.

2) The potential for disruption represented by the continued presence in Lebanon of Syrian intelligence forces.

3) The refusal of Hizbullah to disarm and its close ties to Syria.

4) Attempts by Iran to interfere in Lebanon's internal affairs.

There's plenty to worry about -- and I'm glad that the MSM is finally taking notice.

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