Eye on Lebanon: More than Hizbullah

Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Michel Pharaon of the March 14 block said recently that "it is in our interest to have the international community protecting Lebanon pending regaining its sovereignty." (Naharnet) I've heard this idea before. Just not from someone who holds an official political position. We have bits and pieces in the media, but these people do not speak on their own. This is how an idea gets out on the market. This is one of the best methods to measure the masses' reaction.

What exactly does it mean? Perhaps to put Lebanon under Chapter 7 of the UNSC or bring NATO troops into Lebanon. I personally do not see how either can happen under these circumstances. Not to mention that Lebanon is not Iraq, Afghanistan or Kosovo.

I'd say that those who push this idea see it as the only option to disarm Hizbullah, bring the country to a functioning condition and restore the rights of the Christians.

I'd go, as far as to say that at a deeper level, it is about Christians and Muslims and the fact that the level of distrust among them has reached its peak. The danger is that as soon as you say bluntly that the core problem is Christians vs Muslims or Muslims vs Christians, we step  into a whole new dimension. No one wins, everyone loses. I am not thinking about the victory one gets in the afterlife. I prefer to stick to the mundane world.

Now, imposing democracy, or bringing democracy at the barrel of the gun does not work. This is a failed policy and I see the effects in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Is it a neo-conservative idea of  "constructive instability" or "creative chaos" ? Could be. Or maybe its just a coincidence. Then again, is there such a thing as coincidence?

Assuming that NATO or UN troops under chapter 7 take over Lebanon, then what? Chaos. Instead of one auto-entitled resistance, Hizbullah, you'll have dozens of resistance forces from all sects. If for some the enemy is now the US, for others Syria or Iran, then all these groups may very well unite under the banner of resisting the international community's occupation. No one gains. Not locally, not regionally or internationally.

In my view, the people behind the idea know they have no chance with the masses, so they want to trespass the population by bringing the international community to impose this plan.

For Lebanon, dialogue is still the best chance, to get in through the situation in one piece.