It seems that the "Wikileaks" documents have begun
to have a positive effect in Lebanon, as today we see
a media battle taking place between the Shiite Amal
movement, and the Iranian sponsored Hezbollah. This is
a positive development because, although we've yet to
see them reach a consensus, we are witnessing them
settle scores amongst themselves.
In the "Wikileaks" documents, it was revealed that
during interviews with the Americans, a number of MPs
and ministers belonging to the Development and
Liberation Bloc, affiliated with Speaker of the
Parliament Nabih Berri, had shown indignation towards
Hezbollah, its weaponry, its domination of Lebanon,
and they even talked about Hezbollah's apparent
subordination to Iran. The documents also revealed the
restlessness of Berri's men with regards to Syria,
saying that if a clear arrangement was not reached
with Syria to deal with the International Tribunal for
the Assassination of Rafik Hariri, then Hezbollah
would turn Lebanon into a living hell by resorting to
car bombs and terrorist attacks. To make matters
worse, the sources claimed that Syria was also capable
of mobilizing its agents in Lebanon, namely the
Palestinians, and its sleeper cells, in order to do
the same thing!
These are important words, and they must be taken
seriously, rather than just be labeled as propaganda.
This is for the simple reason that Hezbollah itself is
taking these words seriously - it has called for the
immediate resignation of each political figure quoted
in the Wikileaks documents. Berri's group, like
Hezbollah, have already relied much on the Wikileaks
documents to damage their opponents like Saad Hariri
and Fouad Siniora, let alone other Arab countries, so
they cannot deem them to be credible here, and false
there. How could Hezbollah, or the Amal movement,
claim that the documents are true when they serve
their interests, and false if they do not?
Furthermore, these documents are not the first, but
there have been other documents revealing that
followers of General Aoun have talked in the same vein
about Hezbollah!
Through these Wikileaks documents, which quoted
followers of Nabih Berri and revealed their opinions
of Hezbollah, the danger of its weaponry, and its
affiliation to Iran, we can deduce that the so-called
moderate Arab camp has been, and still is, correct in
its view of the gravity of Hezbollah and its weapons,
the seriousness of its alliance with Syria, and the
role they play in Lebanon. This is not the opinion of
the moderates only, but also the view of Hezbollah's
allies in the Amal movement, as the documents show.
It is true that the events in our region today, and
the position of Iran and Hezbollah towards them,
specifically their stances towards what is happening
in Bahrain and Syria, have exposed Tehran and
Hezbollah completely. While they criticize the
Bahraini government, in support of the Shiites there,
we find them supporting the regime in Damascus, which
is suppressing the Syrian demonstrators with violence,
even depicting the demands of the Syrians as being
fostered externally. Yet more importantly here are the
Wikileaks documents, and what they reveal about
Hezbollah's allies in Lebanon. They reveal that
everyone, whether in Lebanon or the wider region, or
even in the Shiite Amal movement, is in agreement
about the affiliation of Hezbollah towards Iran, and
the danger of its weaponry, and this is highly
important!