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transformed Hezbolla
The group has gained extensive battlefield experience in Syria, and it claims it is
prepared for another war with Israel if necessary
Members of the Hezbollah scout movement hold portraits of fighters killed while
fighting in Syria at a religious event in the southern Lebanese city of Nabatieh on 4
October 2017 (AFP)
Pictures of fighters killed in battle over the past three years are reverently
displayed across Dahiye (MEE/ Ali Harb)
Still, Hussein Itany, a Beirut-based communications specialist, said there is more
than religion and ideology to Hezbollah's ability to minimise opposition within its
base.
"They're betting on a winning horse," Itany said of the Lebanese Shia community.
"Everything Hezbollah has promised, they delivered. If they say something will
happen, it does. If they say it won't, it doesn't."
Sectarian tensions
The Hezbollah political official said, however, that there has been an ongoing
effort to use of sectarianism to undermine the group.
Hezbollah, he added, also operates from a political standpoint, citing the group's
relationship with resistance movements in Palestine.
But there is no denying that Hezbollah's involvement in Syria has been largely
perceived through a sectarian lens.
Hezbollah's main political opponents in Lebanon are Sunni. Its patrons in Iran are
Shia. Syria's President Bashar al-Assad is from Syria's Alawite community, while
most rebels and their regional backers are Sunni.
Unfortunately, because we were weak, neutrality was imposed on us. Hezbollah,
because it was strong, did not respect the policy of neutrality and sent thousands
of fighters to Syria
- Ashraf Rifi, former justice minister
Furthermore, Sunni politicians have told MEE that they feel frustrated by
Hezbollah's dominance over Lebanon's strategic affairs.
Khoury said Lebanon is witnessing deep and dangerous sectarian divisions that
reflect the state of the Arab world. He added that the sectarian standoff is also
what gave birth to IS.
Hezbollah's role in Syria has intensified sectarian tensions in the country and the
region, he said.
"At the beginning of the war, Sayyed Hassan [Nasrallah] used to say there were
legitimate demands of the Syrian people that the regime must consider," Khoury
told MEE. "He doesn't say that anymore."
Lebanese divisions
When Hezbollah went to war in Syria, large sections of the political establishment
in Lebanon were vocal in supporting of the rebels there.
The Syrian government had even accused Lebanese politicians of arming
opposition groups that it described as "terrorists."
Ashraf Rifi, a former justice minister and a vocal Sunni opponent of Hezbollah,
said the Lebanese government had established a policy of neutrality to protect
the country from a spillover of the war.
"Unfortunately, because we were weak, neutrality was imposed on us. Hezbollah,
because it was strong, did not respect the policy of neutrality and sent thousands
of fighters to Syria," Rifi told MEE.
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'A feeling of defeat': Lebanon's Sunnis frustrated in face of Hezbollah power
Khoury said the balance of power in Lebanon has been tilted in favour of
Hezbollah, which will inevitably diminish the role of the state.
He referred to September clashes between IS militants and the Lebanese army
near the Syrian border, when Hezbollah took the initiative in the fighting and
struck a deal to evacuate the militants.
"There's fear over rebuilding the role of the state," Khoury said.
He added that establishing a capable government in Lebanon would require
Hezbollah to come under the umbrella of the state, without unilaterally dragging
the country into regional wars.
"Lebanon's mission is to establish a conscious, responsible environment for co-
existence between sects. If Lebanon can't fulfill this mission, the nation has no
meaning," he said.
Posted by Thavam