Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah has survived an internal attempt to remove him from the helm of his organization, a Kuwaiti newspaper claimed on Tuesday.The Al-Seyassah daily newspaper cited "informed political sources" as saying that Nasrallah outmaneuvered rival senior Hizbullah members who plotted to remove him from his position of secretary -general , and allocate him instead the symbolic position of supreme leader.
Two factions exist within Hizbullah today; one which advocates a close relationship with Syria, without negatively affecting the organization's relationship with Iran, while a second faction wants to give exclusive priority and political subordination to Iran's Supreme Leader Imam Ali Khamenei, and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the report said. Hassan Nasrallah subscribes to the former approach, it added.
According to the report, the plot against Nasrallah was motivated by frustrations within the pro-Iranian faction in Hizbullah, due to Nasrallah's decision to adopt Syria's wish to remove the pro-western Lebanese government from power, through a series of mass demonstrations and threats of violence. So far, these attempts have all failed at toppling the Fouad Siniora administration. "Nasrallah's plan reflected the Syrian wish of toppling the Lebanese government, and this is not Iran's plan. Differences exploded within Hizbullah, and a leadership conference was held in an inner southern suburb of Beirut. What took place during the conference remains untold," the report said.
Iran too had expressed mounting dissatisfaction with Nasrallah for acting solely in Syria's interests in Lebanon, the report claimed. "Nasrallah had anticipated the conference (to try and remove him) and visited Iran secretly to clarify his position, especially after the outpouring of Iranian discontent over Nasrallah's bias towards the Syrian line," the report claimed. "Information sources add that Nasrallah faced opposition from some offices in the party leadership, and some suggested he be given the status of emeritus supreme leader of the party and give up the post of secretary - general. All of these attempts failed and Nasrallah managed to thwart them. He earned Iranian support in his recent visit to Tehran, and he earned the support of large groups of the middle and lower-ranking party leaders, in addition to enjoying support among the masses of the party and the Shiites in general," Al-Seyassah quoted sources as saying.
Nasrallah also used a speech last week to send a message to those within Hizbullah who had attempted to dislodge him, the report added. In his speech Nasrallah attacked the Arab countries , defended Iran's role in the region and Syria's role in the assassinations of the Lebanese leaders . His defense of both countries ( Syria and Iran) prompted MP Walid Jumblatt a prominent anti-Syrian leader in Lebanon to accuse Nasrallah of turning into a "spokesman for Syria and Iran."
"Nasrallah says, 'if you want an international probe expect more assassinations.' He also said 'if you want freedom, sovereignty and independence, we won't stand for it and we will impose a consensus candidate' by which he means a head of state who rejects all international resolutions," Jumblatt said.