United States and Israel have executed a stealth coup that has precipitated the collapse of Lebanon's unity government.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton preemptively torpedoed negotiations between Saudi Arabia and Syria by telling "Saudi King Abdullah and Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri that the U.S. would reject any settlement at the expense of the UN tribunal." (Tehran Times) Clinton knew that the Saudi-Syria team was close to a "breakthrough" that would have resolved contentious issues related to the investigation of the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. She could not allow that to happen because it would derail the US/Israeli plan for regime change and another Israeli invasion of Lebanon.
According to AFP, the STL's indictments could be delivered (secretly) as soon as Monday and members of Hezbollah will be implicatd.
"According to several sources close to the office of the prosecutor, the charges target members of Hezbollah," it said." ("Hezbollah 'expected to be named in Hariri probe', AFP)
Also, it looks like the US and Israel have decided to cast wider net and use the court to implicate Israel's arch-rival Iran at the same time. This is from Israel's YNet News:
"Sources say UN tribunal will present evidence showing the murder of former Lebanese premier was committed by Iran's Quds force and Hezbollah at Khamenei's order. 'They considered him Saudi agent,' source says.
Hezbollah's Secretary General, Hassan Nasrallah knows the game that the US and Israel are playing, which is why he called for an emergency cabinet meeting last week to see if an agreement could be reached that would settle the matter internally. But current Prime Minister Saad Hariri--who is allied to the White House--rejected the idea leaving Nasrallah no choice but to disband the government and call for new elections.
Hezbollah's action has been sharply criticized in the western media, but it was perfectly legal within the framework of Lebanon's constitution. Hezbollah and its allies control more than a third of the cabinet which allows them to dissolve the government whenever they choose. Hariri's collaboration with Washington forced Nasrallah act in a way that served Lebanon's greater interests.
Hariri has seriously compromised Lebanese sovereignty by allowing foreign powers to rule on a domestic criminal case. Imagine if the shoe was on the other foot, and Lebanese leaders demanded that the investigation into the assassination of President John F. Kennedy not be conducted by the FBI, but by politically-motivated bureaucrats in Brussels. What American president would ever accept such a demeaning offer?
Hariri should have denounced the STL long ago, and he would have if he was not secretly operating as a US/Israeli client.
Keep in mind, that, according to recently released memos from Wikileaks, high-ranking officials in the Lebanese government collaborated with US diplomats prior to the 34-day war with Israel in 2006 assuring that 1,400 Lebanese civilians would be killed in the onslaught. Here's a summary of the memo:
"A classified cable from the US embassy in Beirut has revealed how Lebanon’s ruling March 14 alliance discussed with the US its preparations for a military attack by Israel against its rival Hezbollah....
So, there are collaborators in the Lebanese government and they are helping the US and Israel to subvert the resolution process, undermine Lebanese sovereignty, exacerbate divisions between the factions, and create a pretext for a future Israeli invasion.
And there's a bigger picture, too; a plot to lure Hezbollah into seizing power in Beirut. This is precisely what Washington and Tel Aviv are hoping for in order to justify another invasion. Here's an excerpt from an article by former US Ambassador Marc Ginsberg on the liberal website Huffington Post:
"Hezbollah may ironically be on the verge of converting its dastardly assassination of Hariri into a golden opportunity to finally seize full power in Lebanon, by deploying its militia to confront Lebanon's much more ill-equipped armed forces....Lebanon is increasingly becoming a satellite of Iran, and there is nothing Iran wants more than for Hezbollah to emerge as the only power left standing in Beirut, waiting impatiently to do Iran's bidding as its frontline Frankenstein against Israel.... ("Firestorm among Lebanon's Cedars, former US Ambassador Marc Ginsberg)
And here's more-of-the-same from David Eshel in an article titled "Next Israeli-Arab War Could Begin In Beirut":
"Israel’s next war could be fought on several fronts and result in far more destruction and casualties on all sides than recent conflicts. So said outgoing Israeli military intelligence chief Amos Yadlin in an address to the Knesset in November. Yadlin believes that despite an unprecedented period of calm for Israel right now—primarily due to its deterrence, alliances with Egypt and Jordan, and peace in the West Bank—there is a strong possibility of a major escalation of hostilities with two neighbors, Lebanon and Syria.
The flashpoint would be an attempt by Hezbollah to overthrow the Lebanese government, with backing from Syria and Iran. An overthrow could be triggered if an investigation by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) assigns responsibility for the 2005 murder of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri to Hezbollah....
And then there's this from the Israel Project.org in an article titled "Hezbollah aiming for Lebanon takeover":
With 20,000 trained fighters, Hezbollah is already much more powerful than the Lebanese army and in 2008 demonstrated its superiority by seizing part of the capital, brushing aside the army’s resistance. “There is currently no force within Lebanon able to stand firmly against the physical power of Hezbollah,” wrote Jonathan Spyer, a senior research fellow at the Global Research in International Affairs Center in Herzliya in the Jerusalem Post.
The impending Hezbollah takeover threatens to destabilize the entire region as well as Lebanon itself.... While analysts do not see an immediate outbreak of hostilities with Israel, few doubt that another confrontation is coming some time down the road...." ("Hezbollah aiming for Lebanon takeover", Alan Elsner, The Israel Project)
So, is this the plan, to lure Hezbollah into seizing power thus justifying another invasion by Israel?
No one knows for sure, but there's a lot about the US/Israeli-backed tribunal that doesn't pass the "smell test"..
Why is Nasrallah demonized in the western media?"
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