In order for the United States to pursue its war against terrorism towards any meaningful results, it must support friendly forces, working in coordination with Israel, in reshaping the balance of power in the Middle East. These pro-Western forces can diminish, if not destroy, existing terrorism sponsored by Iran and Syria. These states not only deny democracy to areas under their control, but they also undermine US interests in the Middle East in general and in Lebanon in particular.
In 1998, as a coalition of opposition Lebanese groups were meeting in Washington, D.C. to discuss achieving freedom and to seek US support for the fight against the Syrian occupation of Lebanon, a wave of 7 or 8 RPG rockets struck the United States Embassy in Beirut. The Syrian message was clear: If the United States were to become involved in supporting Lebanese opposition forces, then the response would be terrorism against American interests anywhere in Lebanon. Now, as America pursues a campaign against terrorism, the West has a perfect opportunity to stop this intimidation and to bring Syrian-backed terrorists to justice.
Most of the terrorist organizations in the area have bases in Lebanon, a country under total Syrian occupation and ruled by a de-facto Syrian ruler, Ghazi Kanaan. Kanaan?s Lebanon harbors, protects and supports those terrorist organizations in Lebanon. Therefore, in order to succeed in a meaningful way in the fight against terrorism, we suggest the following as a precursor to any subsequent action in the Middle East:
1. United States political support for United Nations Security Council Resolution 520, which stipulates the withdrawal of all foreign forces from Lebanese territory. After the withdrawal of the Israeli Defense Forces from southern Lebanon, as a gesture of peace by Israel directed at the international community, the late president Hafez al-Assad of Syria, in coordination with Iran, bluffed the United States and never withdrew the Syrian Army from Lebanon.
To the contrary, Assad used the Israeli withdrawal as propaganda in the context of the Arab-Israeli conflict and increased assistance for Islamic terrorist groups. Simultaneously, he transformed southern Lebanon into a major terrorist base managed by Hezbollah . This is the dynamic that provoked the deadly ?intifada? in Israel today, a war based on the ?Hezbollah model,? and not the visit of Ariel Sharon to the Temple Mount as Arab propagandists like to claim.
2. Unlike the Iraqi National Congress that has no military capability to confront Saddam Hussein, the Government of Free Lebanon in Exile has adequate manpower to neutralize the terrorist groups in Lebanon and to restore a Lebanese democracy friendly to the West. The Government of Free Lebanon in Exile needs the support of the United States in order to liberate Lebanon from the forces of terrorism. One lesson the US should learn from the events of September 11th is that the liberation of Lebanon is an important factor in the continued security and stability of the United States.
3. The Government of Free Lebanon in Exile needs the Israeli Government to provide military assistance to fight the Hezbollah and their Palestinian-Syrian counterparts. Southern Lebanon could be the "Mazar El Sharif" of Lebanon, a stepping stone that will be used for the liberation of all of occupied Lebanon. This new dynamic would restore a friendly regime in Lebanon and move the Middle East peace process to a new stage.
4. The United States should stop focusing on Yasser Arafat for the implementation of any peace agreement, for the result will only be subversion, through covert means at first and then through open warfare as he attempts to gain control of the entire region, just as he did in southern Lebanon.
Cornered by his own terrorism, Arafat today wants to champion the cause of Christianity in the Middle East and is asking for Vatican assistance to do so. The Vatican, for its part, has chosen to ignore the fact that Arafat?s PLO forces have changed the demographics of Bethlehem from 80% Christian to 20% Christian. The Vatican?s political considerations have led it to forget that Arafat?s forces killed hundreds of thousands of Christians in Lebanon, destroyed Christian villages and burned their churches.
5. The United States needs to take a clear stand in its fight against terrorism and stop appeasing the terrorist regimes in Syria and Iran. Unfortunately, rather than progressing towards a stable and democratic Middle East, we have been witnessing Western failure to confront Syria and Iran for years. Today the West is attempting to reach an unpredictable form of short-term rapprochement with Iran and Syria, but this can only lead to dangerous long-term results of the type that we witnessed on September 11th.
6. The United States should support mini-wars of independence by friendly forces in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Iran. These terrorist regimes will collapse when the moment of truth arrives in the Middle East and once it does, those states can take their place as sovereign entities. The United States should then support the new democratic regimes with foreign aid, for only such regimes will be able to lead their people toward prosperity, security and economic growth.
In accordance with the foregoing principles, the Government of Free Lebanon in Exile is ready to commit thousands of lives in order to liberate Lebanon from the terrorist organizations supported by Iran and Syria, to promote the peace process in the Middle East and to promote freedom, democracy and stability in Lebanon and the surrounding countries. The Government of Free Lebanon in Exile also urges the United States to support Dr. Rifaat el-Assad, as he is an important factor in the Middle East and can replace the present, despotic Syrian government with a new democratic and pro-Western one. Dr Rifaat el-Assad will be a strong dynamic in any future peace initiatives as a free Syria is a stepping stone for peace in the whole region.
Only two men can currently achieve strategic peace in the Middle East. Those two men, who both fought old wars in the region and who have the credentials to achieve peace, are Rifaat el-Assad and Ariel Sharon. A free Lebanon is a prerequisite for stability and a necessity for both of them.
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Nagi N. Najjar is the Executive Director of the Lebanese Foundation for Peace, established to promote a lasting peace between Lebanon, Israel, and Syria.
In 1998, as a coalition of opposition Lebanese groups were meeting in Washington, D.C. to discuss achieving freedom and to seek US support for the fight against the Syrian occupation of Lebanon, a wave of 7 or 8 RPG rockets struck the United States Embassy in Beirut. The Syrian message was clear: If the United States were to become involved in supporting Lebanese opposition forces, then the response would be terrorism against American interests anywhere in Lebanon. Now, as America pursues a campaign against terrorism, the West has a perfect opportunity to stop this intimidation and to bring Syrian-backed terrorists to justice.
Most of the terrorist organizations in the area have bases in Lebanon, a country under total Syrian occupation and ruled by a de-facto Syrian ruler, Ghazi Kanaan. Kanaan?s Lebanon harbors, protects and supports those terrorist organizations in Lebanon. Therefore, in order to succeed in a meaningful way in the fight against terrorism, we suggest the following as a precursor to any subsequent action in the Middle East:
1. United States political support for United Nations Security Council Resolution 520, which stipulates the withdrawal of all foreign forces from Lebanese territory. After the withdrawal of the Israeli Defense Forces from southern Lebanon, as a gesture of peace by Israel directed at the international community, the late president Hafez al-Assad of Syria, in coordination with Iran, bluffed the United States and never withdrew the Syrian Army from Lebanon.
To the contrary, Assad used the Israeli withdrawal as propaganda in the context of the Arab-Israeli conflict and increased assistance for Islamic terrorist groups. Simultaneously, he transformed southern Lebanon into a major terrorist base managed by Hezbollah . This is the dynamic that provoked the deadly ?intifada? in Israel today, a war based on the ?Hezbollah model,? and not the visit of Ariel Sharon to the Temple Mount as Arab propagandists like to claim.
2. Unlike the Iraqi National Congress that has no military capability to confront Saddam Hussein, the Government of Free Lebanon in Exile has adequate manpower to neutralize the terrorist groups in Lebanon and to restore a Lebanese democracy friendly to the West. The Government of Free Lebanon in Exile needs the support of the United States in order to liberate Lebanon from the forces of terrorism. One lesson the US should learn from the events of September 11th is that the liberation of Lebanon is an important factor in the continued security and stability of the United States.
3. The Government of Free Lebanon in Exile needs the Israeli Government to provide military assistance to fight the Hezbollah and their Palestinian-Syrian counterparts. Southern Lebanon could be the "Mazar El Sharif" of Lebanon, a stepping stone that will be used for the liberation of all of occupied Lebanon. This new dynamic would restore a friendly regime in Lebanon and move the Middle East peace process to a new stage.
4. The United States should stop focusing on Yasser Arafat for the implementation of any peace agreement, for the result will only be subversion, through covert means at first and then through open warfare as he attempts to gain control of the entire region, just as he did in southern Lebanon.
Cornered by his own terrorism, Arafat today wants to champion the cause of Christianity in the Middle East and is asking for Vatican assistance to do so. The Vatican, for its part, has chosen to ignore the fact that Arafat?s PLO forces have changed the demographics of Bethlehem from 80% Christian to 20% Christian. The Vatican?s political considerations have led it to forget that Arafat?s forces killed hundreds of thousands of Christians in Lebanon, destroyed Christian villages and burned their churches.
5. The United States needs to take a clear stand in its fight against terrorism and stop appeasing the terrorist regimes in Syria and Iran. Unfortunately, rather than progressing towards a stable and democratic Middle East, we have been witnessing Western failure to confront Syria and Iran for years. Today the West is attempting to reach an unpredictable form of short-term rapprochement with Iran and Syria, but this can only lead to dangerous long-term results of the type that we witnessed on September 11th.
6. The United States should support mini-wars of independence by friendly forces in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Iran. These terrorist regimes will collapse when the moment of truth arrives in the Middle East and once it does, those states can take their place as sovereign entities. The United States should then support the new democratic regimes with foreign aid, for only such regimes will be able to lead their people toward prosperity, security and economic growth.
In accordance with the foregoing principles, the Government of Free Lebanon in Exile is ready to commit thousands of lives in order to liberate Lebanon from the terrorist organizations supported by Iran and Syria, to promote the peace process in the Middle East and to promote freedom, democracy and stability in Lebanon and the surrounding countries. The Government of Free Lebanon in Exile also urges the United States to support Dr. Rifaat el-Assad, as he is an important factor in the Middle East and can replace the present, despotic Syrian government with a new democratic and pro-Western one. Dr Rifaat el-Assad will be a strong dynamic in any future peace initiatives as a free Syria is a stepping stone for peace in the whole region.
Only two men can currently achieve strategic peace in the Middle East. Those two men, who both fought old wars in the region and who have the credentials to achieve peace, are Rifaat el-Assad and Ariel Sharon. A free Lebanon is a prerequisite for stability and a necessity for both of them.
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Nagi N. Najjar is the Executive Director of the Lebanese Foundation for Peace, established to promote a lasting peace between Lebanon, Israel, and Syria.