Mideast Chess Match Plays Out in Lebanon

"Lebanon, a country that was supposed to become the main base of Western culture in the Arab world, has turned into a base of jihadi and resistance cultures."

— Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, July 17

Since Friday, the streets of Beirut have been filled with Hezbollah supporters calling for the ouster of the pro-Western government of Prime Minister Siniora. The events currently playing out in Lebanon could be considered the fruits of seeds that were first planted 22 years ago, when the terror organization Hezbollah was founded.

The August 2 edition of this column, "An Islamic Republic Is Hezbollah's Aim," stated that Hezbollah's ultimate goal is "to take over the Lebanese government."

A member of the Lebanese parliament, Mustafa Aloush, was quoted in the Lebanese daily Al-Mustaqbal on September 17 as supporting such a theory. "Hezbollah is a militia with political goals, and first among these goals is the establishment of an Islamic republic in Lebanon, according to the path of the Imam Khomeini," he said.

Many other pieces on the "Middle East Chess Board" also are playing out in Lebanon. Among them, of course, is the America-Iran factor.

On a visit to Iran in the second week of November, the speaker of the Lebanese parliament, Nabih Berri, met with President Ahmadinejad and Ayatollah Khamenei. During his meeting on November 15 with Ayatollah Khamenei, which was covered extensively in the Arab and Iranian press, Mr. Berri was quoted as saying America and Israel would meet with defeat in Lebanon, and that "political developments in the region and the world confirm that a new phase has begun."

"This opportunity must be exploited to the full through determined action and trust in Allah the Almighty," Mr. Berri said. "The latest developments are the beginning of the fall of the American empire. ... The victory of the Lebanese and of the Islamic resistance played a significant part in the defeat of the Republican Party in the recent congressional elections" in America.

Mr. Berri added, "America and the Zionist entity are trying to keep the Islamic Republic from exerting its spiritual influence in the region," but "the Islamic Republic of Iran will be the leading force in the new phase."

Another development playing out now in Lebanon is the Sunni-Shiite dispute. A New York Times report on December 2 detailed how Lebanese Sunnis are supporting the Lebanese government against the majority of Shiites in the country that support Hezbollah.

On this front, Al-Mustaqbal published an article on November 20 by a Sunni sheik, Said Harmush, that criticized Hezbollah. Members of Hezbollah claim that they are acting in the name of Islam, he wrote, "but they are doing the exact opposite of Islam! ... Roving bands of [Hezbollah members] took over property belonging to ‘the Sunni brothers,' as they call them — houses, land, and shops. Then they started with acts of robbery, slaughter, humiliation, and expulsion, much more than the Jews have done anywhere."

Sheik Harmush discussed in detail how last summer, following the conflict with Israel, "Some of the roving bands took over private and public lands, and built houses there, as though these lands were spoils of war! So what Islam are they talking about?"

Since the end of November, participants in Sunni Islamist Web forums such as www.mohajroon.com have written that a battle between Sunnis and Shiites in Lebanon is imminent, and they have proposed steps to prepare for this war. Among the ideas discussed have been gathering intelligence on Shiite weapons arsenals in order to seize them, purchasing houses and warehouses throughout the country to serve as bases for the Sunni mujahedeen, and "liquidating" Shiite imams and leaders.

As the crowds of Hezbollah supporters fill the streets of Lebanon, it appears that any day now some action will spark further instability in the country.

Mr. Stalinsky is the executive director of the Middle East Media Research Institute.