Waging a proxy war

 

 

Rafik Hariri, the assassinated ex-Prime Minister of Lebanon had said: “In Lebanon, believe nothing of what you are told and only half of what you see!”. Never did his words ring truer than now, as the Lebanese Army launches its military campaign against the Fatah al-Islam citadels in Nahr al-Bared refugee camp near Tripoli in northern Lebanon. The incessant shelling, on the pretext of smoking out terrorists, has had a devastating impact on the Palestinian refugees in the camp. Fatah al-Islam has forced thousands to seek refuge in the refugee camp at Beddawi.

CONFLICT TALES

Lebanese army launches attacks against Fatah al-Islam

Strikes launched at the behest of the pro-western regime

Lebanese govt. has a history of mishandling conflicts



The military campaign was launched at the behest of the pro-western regime, which claims that the Fatah al-Islam group is a tool of Syrian intelligence. Also, the Lebanese government insists that Syria has sponsored terrorist strikes like bus bombings and attacks on Lebanese troops through Fatah al-Islam in order to destabilise the government. Oussama Safa, noted analyst on Lebanon, said to TSI from Beirut: “Fatah al-Islam is a fringe group that has neither the support of Hezbollah nor the patronage of ordinary Palestinians. They are being helped by Al Qaeda in order to counter the influence and popularity of Hezbollah, which draws its cadre from the Shiite sect.” In the meantime, Syria has distanced itself from Fatah al-Islam. This was expected, as far as Lebanese politics is concerned. The manner in which the Lebanese government handled the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel left little to imagination. It left a vacuum that was filled by fringe groups like Fatah al-Islam. One may conclude that the emergence of Fatah al-Islam is an example of a blowback from the misplaced policies of the Lebanese and Syrian governments, similar to the growth of Al Qaeda being spawned due to US sponsorship of the Mujahideen in Afghanistan.