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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| US denies being ready to accept Hezbollah |
| 2005-03-13 |
| The United States is ready to accept Hezbollah as a player in mainstream politics in Lebanon, according to a report appearing in The New York Times on Thursday. The story was swiftly disputed by the Bush administration, which said its policy was unchanged. "The report suggests that our view has changed on Hezbollah. It has not," White House spokesman Scott McClellan told reporters traveling with President George W. Bush to Louisville, Kentucky. Asked if the report was correct, McClellan said, "It's wrong." U.S., European and United Nations officials told The New York Times that the United States had reluctantly recognized that, besides having a militia and sponsoring attacks on Israelis, Hezbollah was a huge political force in Lebanon and could play an important role in that country following the withdrawal of Syrian forces currently stationed there. "Hezbollah has American blood on its hands," one official said, referring to events such as the truck bombing that killed more than 200 U.S. Marines in Beirut in 1983. "The administration has an absolute aversion to admitting that Hezbollah has a role to play in Lebanon, but that is the path we're going down." The New York Times said Hezbollah had also become a lower priority in negotiations to demand the disarmament of the organization, adding that the United States agreed with France that the militant group was too important a force to antagonize. "There is a realization by France and the United States that if you tackle Hezbollah now, you array the Shi'ites against you. With elections coming in Lebanon, you don't want the entire Shi'ite community against you," one diplomat told the paper. "Obviously we'd like to see them disarmed as UN Security Council Resolution 1559 requires. Once disarmed, they could undertake any political role in Lebanon that they can win democratically at the polls. This doesn't constitute any change in the U.S. position," the official said. Israel is vehemently opposed to any change in the U.S. attitude toward Hezbollah, and continues to view the organization as a terror group that threatens Israeli security, both along the northern border and by providing aid to terrorists in the territories. The European Parliament, meanwhile, branded Hezbollah a "terrorist" group Thursday, urging European Union ministers to take action against the organization. "Parliament considers that clear evidence exists of terrorist activities by Hezbollah. The [EU] Council should take all necessary steps to curtail them," a non-binding resolution adopted by a big majority said. The resolution, which also renewed a call for Syria to withdraw its troops and intelligence services from Lebanon, was adopted by 473 votes to eight with 33 abstentions. The EU is under pressure from the United States and Israel to add the Iranian-backed Hezbollah to its list of outlawed terrorist organizations, obliging member states to seize its assets and take action against its members. But several EU governments, concerned about upsetting delicate Middle East negotiations, have so far been reluctant, including France, Spain and Britain. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #7 "There is a realization by France and the United States that if you tackle Hezbollah now, you array the Shi’ites against you. With elections coming in Lebanon, you don’t want the entire Shi’ite community against you," one diplomat told the paper. Mr Churchill must realize that shooting down Luftwaffe planes will array the entire German folk against England. |
| Posted by: gromgoru 2005-03-13 9:48:37 PM |
| #6 NYT is pulling stuff outta their ass again? Nah - they're LOBBYING again. |
| Posted by: too true 2005-03-13 10:21:51 AM |
| #5 Hezbollah still has to answer for the 231 dead Marines in 1983. |
| Posted by: badanov 2005-03-13 9:25:47 AM |
| #4 NYT + unnamed sources = |
| Posted by: Raj 2005-03-13 9:17:40 AM |
| #3 Go ahead and mentally substitute "al Queda" for "Hizbullah", to help imagine just how much this is not going to happen. 242 dead Marines in Beirut are still remembered vividly, for both Hizbullah and Iran. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2005-03-13 9:06:37 AM |
| #2 This is some French and NYT fantasy. Hizbollah is owed more than one buy us. No way in hell will we "except" them. |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet of Doom 2005-03-13 6:50:13 AM |
| #1 NYT is pulling stuff outta their ass again? |
| Posted by: Sobiesky 2005-03-13 5:44:02 AM |