Lebanon’s Economic Crisis and Hizbullah’s Political Prudence

Crescent International

Not all elections and popular uprisings are equal. France’s reign of terror in 1793 was a form of popular uprising against the old system. It brought nothing but terror. Adolf Hitler was elected to power; those elections ushered the Second World War.

In recent history, we have seen that the “revolution” in Syria was nothing more than an imperialist project manipulated to secure NATO and Israel’s strategic regional interests.

Under secularism, the primary legitimacy of the system comes from the people, making the fundamental basis of the state quite unstable.

People swing from one policy and ideology to another.

Under an Islamic system, people are part of the legitimacy framework but they are not the main pillar.

Governance is a two-way street. The governors and the governed both have rights and responsibilities over one another.

The recent mass demonstrations in Lebanon against economic hardships, corruption and the Western designed sectarian system of governance are completely understandable.

The Western media and other Western institutions’ hype about the protests points to a plot to manipulate genuine grievances to advance the imperialists’ illegitimate interests.

The sectarian system the corporate media continues to focus on is not of Lebanon’s making. It was French colonialists that imposed the confessional system in 1936 before leaving.

The West’s focus on current demonstrations in Lebanon intensified after Hizbullah Secretary General Sayed Hassan Nasrallah declared that while people’s demands are completely legitimate, toppling the government would not solve any problems.

Both Lebanese secularists and Western political analysts accept this reality.

Sayed Nasrallah’s statements were immediately misinterpreted by the Western media and presented as Hizbullah’s anti-people position.

This was done despite the fact that in his speech, Sayed Nasrallah accepted his own responsibility as a political leader for what is happening.

He demanded that all political groups focus on people, rather than their narrow clan-based interests.

Below we present a summary of some of the key points in Sayed Nasrallah’s speech of October 19, 2019. This was put together by a prominent Beirut based Syrian journalist, Laith Marouf.

• We must all be held responsible including me... even though we are only a small part of the government... I accept my responsibility.
• To force financial solutions that are against the will of the people is to purposefully work towards the explosion of public anger.
• The people can’t carry this weight, the majority are working class; the rich politicians will not be affected by these new taxes.
• When they say they are fixing the problem, they mean more taxes and more fees, less services and lower salaries.
• What is required is for the politicians to come and say to the people: here is how we taxed this company; here is how we cut corruption.
• Sure we all have to sacrifice, but to come to the masses and ask them to sacrifice while everyday they hear about another scandal that is not addressed, you are calling for an uprising.
• My advice to the demonstrators: you are calling for us to join; we heard your requests on air. If Hizbullah were to join you, they would turn this into a political battle. They would allege that Iran is behind this. Your strength is that you are not associated with us.
• Be careful about the parties in power who will ride you, who will call for their members to join you, this will divert your movement from being independent and will be politicized in the wrong way.

A typical politician would have immediately attempted to ride the popular wave of protests. Nasrallah is not a typical politician and the movement he leads is not a textbook political party set-up to grab as much power as possible.

It is a movement that operates outside the secular notion of what politics is and ought to be.

Hizbullah’s rejection to jump on the bandwagon with a popular unrest demonstrates the Islamic movement’s prudence and commitment to principles rather than narrow interests.

The declaration of Sayed Nasrallah immediately triggered a reaction from the Saudi regime that appears to have ordered one of its proxies in Lebanon (the Lebanese Forces Party), led by Samir Geagea to spring into action.

It would not come as a surprise if Israel, NATO and the Saudi regime try to utilize these mass protests in order to create a political crisis in Lebanon.

It is the home-base of the only Islamic movement which defeated Israel. Thus, the Zionist regime and its backers will not sit idle without attempting to exploit the protests for their own nefarious agenda.

END

Netanyahu’s war crimes

Age-old political trick: fear at home stoked by enemy at the door

Tahir Mustafa

Facing corruption charges while another election looms, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is trying to bomb his way out of the mess he faces. In the snake pit of Israeli politics where poisonous propaganda against opponents is the norm, appearing tough is considered a prerequisite for success that he thinks would boost his chances of re-election.

Arresting, clubbing, and shooting Palestinian children are so routine that they no longer serve the purpose of being seen as “tough.” Something more dramatic is needed. This is what Netanyahu did over three days from August 25 to 27. His mad bombers carried out attacks in Syria, Lebanon, and as far away as Iraq. And US Vice President Mike Pence, a Christian Zionist, chimed in on August 27 that Israel had the right to “defend itself.” Israel was not attacked by anyone but in the demented psychology of American officialdom, only and only Israel has this right; others must suffer in silence.

Zionist Israel has been attacking Syria regularly since the foreign-instigated war was unleashed in the Levant in 2011. With the war nearing its end and terrorists on the verge of total defeat, the Zionists and their piggy bank, the US, have gone into panic mode. The regime change plot in Syria has been defeated. The resistance front comprising Syria, Islamic Iran, Hizbullah, and Iraq, has won.

While Israeli attacks against Syria are routine, surely constituting war crimes, the August 24 strikes were different. Israel launched a series of attacks against a village near the Syrian capital of Damascus. In the past, Israel used its US-supplied warplanes or missiles for such attacks on Syria. But with increasingly sophisticated missile defence systems, Syria has been able to intercept most missiles and drive the Israeli warplanes away before they could hit their targets.

In the August 24 attacks, however, drones laden with explosives, not missiles, were used. The Zionists appeared desperate: they had no intention of retrieving their drones. Instead, the drones were programmed to fly into the target, crash, and explode.

And the attack had to be dramatized. Its purpose was more political than military. Thus, Israeli military commanders were trotted out in front of cameras to claim they had “attacked an Iranian site.” The Zionists further claimed that the drone strike near Damascus had preempted an Iranian attack on northern Israel that was planned for August 29.

Not surprisingly, Iran denied these nonsensical Zionist claims including that they or any of their assets had been hit in the strike. If Iran intended to hit Zionist targets why would it wait for so many days before carrying out the operation? It requires no great military genius to figure out that surprise is a major factor in the success of any military operation. In an address to the people on August 27, Hizbullah leader Sayyid Hasan Nasrullah said two Hizbullah fighters were killed in Aqraba village outside Damascus. They were resting in a house that was not a military post and he vowed to seek revenge for the killings.

For warmonger and war criminal Netanyahu, however, it makes perfect sense to dramatize the latest drone strikes. Adding Iran to the list of targets is meant to boost his macho image. It shows the depth of his desperation. It is also quite revealing that none of his political opponents castigated him for carrying out illegal strikes against other sovereign states. In a perfect world governed by ruled-based order, these warmongers would be charged with war crimes. Unfortunately, lawlessness prevails in the world; might is right is the dictum.

The Zionists’ fear of Islamic Iran, however, is obvious. In 2006, the lightly armed Hizbullah fighters with no tanks, planes, or artillery gave them a bloody nose; what chance would they have against Iran’s Revolutionary Guards? Israeli soldiers can beat up unarmed defenceless Palestinian children and women but when confronted by highly motivated Iranian fighters, they get fright. They should; bullies need to be confronted.

Desperate to divert attention from a domestic corruption scandal and win re-election, on the premise that only he can provide security for a criminal enterprise in free fall, war criminal puts on a political show for the gullible audience at home by bombing the existential enemy at the gates, a ruse he learned from political mentor Bill Clinton, who himself kicked-off his re-election campaign by sending cruise missiles into defenseless Afghanistan and by bombing a pharmaceutical fac-tory in Sudan. Look at the world the Zionists have created: a public representative can go to jail for money laundering and favoritism (engineering government contracts to go to family members), but he is congratulated for directly killing thousands of civilians who want nothing more than to go back home in peace, and indiscriminately killing millions more on the claim that they are a threat to all Jews, and not just the career criminals amongst them.

The Zionists also sent two drones to attack targets in Lebanon. One drone crashed into some buildings in the suburb of Beirut while the second one crashed in a nearby empty area. Hizbullah leader Sayyid Nasrullaah warned that there would be retaliation for Zionist aggression. H is a man of his word; the Zionists had better take heed. Lebanese President Michel Aoun called the Israeli attack a “declaration of war.” Aoun is a former military officer; he knows a thing or two about military matters.

Similarly, Lebanese Prime Minister Sa‘d Hariri described the Israeli attack on Lebanon as a “dangerous act, an attack against Lebanon’s sovereignty and a violation of Resolution 1701, which established calm and stability over the past years.” He was speaking to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov via telephone on August 27 and added that Lebanon was counting on Russia’s role to help prevent further escalation and tension, as well as to “send clear messages to Israel that it must stop violating Lebanon’s sovereignty.”

“Hariri stressed that Israel’s attack against a civilian populated area strikes a blow to the stable situation that prevailed on the border since the issuance of Resolution 1701, and threatens to seriously escalate the situation in the region, with unpredictable results,” a statement from Hariri’s office read.

In its statement, the Russian Foreign Ministry “reaffirmed its commitment to the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity, and stability of Lebanon.” It added that Russia emphasized the need for respecting International Law and United Na-tions Security Council Resolution 1701, which brokered a ceasefire in the war of aggression Israel had launched against Lebanon in the Summer of 2006.

A day earlier, Hariri had called upon the United Nations Security Council to pressure Israel not to initiate any action of aggression against Lebanon. “If Israel’s aggressions escalate, this will have dangerous repercussions on Lebanon and the whole region,” a statement by Hariri’s office said.

It was, however, Israel’s attacks on Hashd al-Sha‘bi, the Iraqi militia that confronted and defeated the Da‘ish takfiri terrorists in Iraq that shows the Zionists’ evil nature. Such attacks are a new, more provocative move by Netanyahu and his allies in the Zionist ghetto.

Over the last few weeks, there were rumors of Israeli attacks against targets in Iraq. These were confirmed in late August when US and Israeli officials confirmed that the attacks were taking place.

On August 22, Hashd al-Sha‘bi, the popular mobilization units (PMU), said they had shot down a spy drone, as it was flying in the vicinity of the 12th Brigade on the outskirts of Baghdad. Three days later (August 25), the Iraqi Arabic-language al-Sumariyah television network reported that the air defenses of the 50th Brigade of Hashd al-Sha‘bi had shot down a spy drone while it was approaching PMU bases in Nineveh.

The media bureau of the volunteer forces said in a statement that Hashd al-Sha‘bi forces shot down the unidentified drone as it was on a reconnaissance mission, and flying for more than 20 minutes over one of their command centers there. The statement added that the volunteer forces brought down the unmanned aerial vehicle with anti-aircraft guns after ensuring that the aircraft was not of Iraqi origin.

The Israeli drone was shot down only a few hours after Prime Minister ‘Adil ‘Abd al-Mahdi, President Barham Salih and Parliament Speaker Muhammad al-Halbusi met senior commanders of Hashd al-Sha‘bi in Baghdad. The purpose was to discuss measures aimed at protecting Iraq’s security and sovereignty against Zionist aggression.

And on August 26, Iraq’s military said it launched an investigation into a purported Israeli strike that killed two Hashd al-Sha‘bi fighters near the town of al-Qa’im close to the country’s western border with Syria. “An investigation is ongoing now to determine what happened with the strike,” the spokesman for Iraq’s Joint Operations Command, Brigadier General Yahya Rasul, told AFP.

What these Zionist crimes against several countries show is that they have become desperate. As Da‘ish terrorists are defeated, Israel feels its murderous allies are being eliminated from the scene. Netanyahu is using these attacks to boost his chances for re-election in a few weeks’ time.

Aggressors, however, do not get away with their crimes for too long. The Zionist entity will soon have to face motivated fighters that are prepared to put an end to injustice born of naked Zionist aggression.

“Israel first” is Making “America last”

Abu Dharr

It goes without saying that American decision makers are Israeli politicians: Americans by citizenship, Israelis by public spirit — with very few exceptions. No one could have demonstrated this better than Secretary of State Mike Pompeo last month during his bossy presence in Cairo, Egypt.

In his speech at the American University of Cairo (AUC) he swanked about being an evangelical Christian with a Bible on his office desk. He also prided himself on 2019 being the 100th year of the establishment of the AUC in Cairo. Aside from these self-congratulatory introductory remarks Pompeo indulged in the fallacies of US foreign policy presenting them as righteous and unselfish!

He began by stating that Christians, Muslims, and Jews are all the children of Abraham. Looks like he hasn’t been studying his Bible carefully. Biblical interpretations equate the sons of Abraham through his son Isma‘il with illegitimate children and in some non-religiously correct interpretations as bastards. Dare any religious or political Egyptian bring that to the attention of their superior Mr. Pompeo?

Mr. Pompeo thinks he is speaking to a dumbed down crowd when he asserts that America is a “force for good” in the Middle East. No common man in the street from Quneitrah (Morocco) to Cairo to Qatar will agree; US presence in the Muslim East has been caustic and catastrophic. Look at the US involvement in Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Libya, Egypt, and Somalia — not to mention Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Palestine.

Mr. Pompeo said that US leaders (alluding to the Obama regime) have misread US history and the historical moment of the Middle East. This was his jab at Obama’s eight years when policies were made apparently to quiet down Islamic Iran. The secretary of state mentioned his and his regime’s determination to put an end to ISIS (by bombing them into defeat). He said that ISIS drove to the outskirts of Baghdad as America hesitated [to confront them]… they raped and pillaged and murdered hundreds of thousands of innocents… What he either knowingly or unknowingly left out of his speech is the fact that successive US regimes fully backed the supporters of ISIS. If US foreign policy really intended to pull the plug on ISIS all that had to be done was to tell US allies Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab(ian) Emirates, and Turkey in particular to stop their financing and arming of ISIS and its offshoots and equivalents throughout the Muslim East. Had the US done that, it would have terminated ISIS and its bloody associates all over the Muslim world.

Mr. Pompeo went on to say that the US was timid in asserting itself when needed. “Asserting itself”! What are hundreds of thousands of US troops doing in the Muslim East? What is the meaning of hundreds of US military bases proliferating within and around the Muslim East? And he had the chutzpah to say that America hesitated to wield power that caused ISIS to spread… As if the US did not want ISIS to spread… US policy has been to setup, entrap, and kill Muslims through the vehicle of ISIS and its counterparts. Naive and susceptible Muslim youth fell into that deception. The ISIS trap would not have worked were it not for the Saudi supervised and financed atavistic religious Wahhabi institutions.

After this stretched starter Pompeo finally made it to his real intent and purpose: Islamic Iran and Zionist Israel. He said that the US must confront the Ayatullahs, not cuddle them. He also said that the US will support in a decisive manner Israel to defeat its enemies (Islamic Iran, Hizbullah, etc). Netanyahu couldn’t have expressed himself better.

Now let us probe the propositions of this pompous Pompeo performance. President Barack Obama went to Cairo to kick off his regime’s version of protecting Israel: the American carrot approach. Here we have Pompeo also going to Cairo, but to kick off his regime’s stick approach.

The pivotal point in Pompeo’s Cairo contention is that Iran should not be contained (that was Obama’s failure) but should be confronted (that, he assumes, will be Trump’s success). This is a very discreet and diplomatic way of saying the US is preparing for war with Islamic Iran. The objective of a conference scheduled to be held in Poland (February 13–14, after Crescent press time) will be to fuse together certain “Sunni-Arabian” nation-states to become the spearhead in a military campaign that will be controlled remotely by evangelical imperialist Washington on behalf of talmudic Zionist Israel. The way information is coming out, the Arabian regimes that will be called to Zionist military duty against Islamic Iran are: Saudi Arabia, the United Arab(ian) Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, Egypt; the jury is still out on Qatar and Oman.

The second target in Pompeo’s speech is Hizbullah. Expect in this coming year Israeli maneuvers or false-flag operations to commence military operations or even a war in Lebanon with US backing and blessing. Pompeo mentioned that Hizbullah has 130,000 missiles in Lebanon equipped with precision Iranian technology to be used against Israel. He (calculatingly) forgot to tell his listeners how many missiles and what type of missiles (among them atomic ones) Israel has and will use against Palestinians, Arabs, and Muslims when its Masada moment arrives.

Pompeo said that the US is not an occupying force. What are US military forces doing in Afghanistan and Iraq? What have US forces been doing in Somalia, Libya, Yemen, and Syria? Wasn’t it Pompeo’s president — Mr. Trump — who bemoaned the fact that the US spent over $6 trillion in the Muslim East without any revenue or profits to show for it? Aren’t ill-advised American policies responsible for the death of over three million Iraqis in the past 40 years, 30,000 Libyans in the past seven years and over a million Afghans in the last four decades? Erroneous American policies rationalized by an “Israel can’t be wrong” bottom line have littered the Muslim East with instability and chaos, murder and mayhem, extremism, violence, and terrorism. Ethnic breakaway tendencies and sectarian wars rage on because of the American foreign policy masterplan of blindly supporting Zionist Israel in its colonizing and expansionist strategy.

The trillions of dollars that the US poured into the hellhole of the Middle East, were they spent on building infrastructures and hospitals, research centers and an industrial base, orphanages and churches (you can’t expect the US to fund the building of any masjids), the political landscape would be very different. US wars for the sake of Israel in the Muslim East have left the Muslim populations with hunger and starvation, tens of millions of refugees, and un-depleted uranium that has polluted the agriculture and water supply for hundreds of thousands of years, not to mention the US policies of beefing up the militaries of its allies for American-Israeli manufactured future conflicts and wars.

The imperialist-Zionist deep state has come to realize that its proxies in the Muslim East are unable to overthrow the Syrian leadership nor are they capable of unseating the Qatari rulers. So don’t be surprised if in this coming year the Saudi and Qatari rulers make up (by the Saudis withdrawing their 13 demands), and both march in cadence with the American Israeli beat against Islamic Iran.

When you closely think about these Zio-American strategies you cannot avoid noticing that most of these reactions by Arabian regimes are because of their inability and unwillingness to sit down and discuss their differences with their Islamic neighbor in Iran.

We should not lose sight of the loss of credibility bordering on the loss of legitimacy of the three stooges: Trump, Netanyahu, and Bin Salman. All three are under growing internal public pressure: the Americans are increasingly fed up with Trump, the people in Israel are showing more willingness to put Netanyahu on trial for his serious legal problems, and the people in Arabia have had it with Bin Salman. These mounting domestic pressures may hasten the American-Israeli-Saudi break out of war against Islamic self-determination from Iran to Lebanon.

To put it succinctly: Israel is making America the sick man of the world. And none dare say so for fear of being called “anti-Semitic.”

If such a war breaks out, and there is no reason to believe that it will not, then let it be known that corporate America, racist Israel, and tribally ruled Arabia are on the wrong side of history when they declare war on 2 billion Muslims who will never cede the rights of the Palestinians to live in their historical fatherland and ancestral motherland. Vietnam will look like a picnic and Masada will be expanded by the thousands.

Israel is Israel; but America is Israel major and Saudi Arabia is Israel minor. If you can’t understand that, you can’t understand today’s world, “Attention! Allah’s help and triumph is near” (2:214).

Abu Dharr

Ashura Uprising Inspires Islamic Movements

In the name of God. Throughout history, many movements have occurred in different regions of the world. Some of these movements have been so great that they have impacted not just their own people but the people of other regions and even the next generations.

However, nearly all movements have declined and lost their impact and significance after a few years. But the uprising of Imam Hussein (AS) on the day of Ashura in the year 61 AH, is the only movement in history that has had huge impact on next movements and revolutions throughout the world. This movement not only has not weakened but has impacted one generation after the other and has indeed gone beyond the Islamic realm. This great movement, despite the lapse of 14 centuries, has remained powerful and effective and beckons as the best model for the seekers of truth and justice.

By the way, why has the tragedy of Ashura been so important and effective?

This movement has specific features which have made it a perpetual model for all. The uprising of Imam Hussein (AS) was launched with a purely divine intention to safeguard the religion of God. This uprising was launched with the leadership of a unique personality, Imam Hussein who was the grandson of the last divine Messenger. Moreover, prominent personalities sacrificed their life before him, who were the most pious and courageous people of their time. In addition, they were killed in the most savage manner and utter loneliness. What adds salt to the injury is that their women and children were also put in chains and taken as captives.

Another feature of Imam Hussein's unique movement was that he fought oppression and corruption which were embodied in the Umayyad ruling system and the person of Yazid. Seeking of truth was another feature of Ashura uprising. In defence of truth and fighting falsehood, Imam Hussein (AS) was not scared of the fact that his small army of 72-strong men was going to confront the 30,000- strong hordes of the enemy; and that he was just preoccupied with his sacred goal.

The faith, piety and valour of Imam Hussein (AS) and his loyal companions indicated their firm belief in the truthfulness of their path and the divine assistance.

The everlasting movement of Imam Hussein is confirmed by both the intellect, logic and the innate nature. Thus, it has been taken as role model by even non-Muslim nations and figures. Another feature of this uprising was that it was in pursuit of freedom and dignity. The younger grandson of the Prophet of Islam, in spite of threats and temptations, stood fast on his sacred goal and proved that one must pay whatever price for his correct belief.

These outstanding features of Imam Hussein's movement caused it to affect other movements such as the uprising of Tawwabin (penitents), led by Mukhtar Saqafi to avenge the blood of Imam Hussein and his companions and overthrow the Umayyad oppressive rule. Fourteen centuries after the tragedy of Ashura, the blood of Imam Hussein and his companions keeps moving the nations and free-spirited humans against oppressors and tyrants.

The Islamic Revolution in Iran, as the greatest movement in the present era, is a very clear and irrefutable example of the impact of Imam Hussein's movement. The initiator of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Khomeini, and the present leader of the Revolution, Ayatollah Khamenei, have always emphasized on the radian path of Imam Hussein (AS). Other prominent persons of the Islamic Republic have also repeated the clear remarks and stances of Imam Khomeini and Ayatollah Khamenei. Imam Khomeini said, "The Islamic Revolution of Iran is a ray of Ashura and its great divine revolution."               

Before and after the victory of the Islamic Revolution, people showed in words and deeds that they were following the model of Ashura. Resistance, self-sacrifice, fighting oppression, freedom-seeking and other features of the Islamic Revolution have all been adopted from Ashura uprising. The point to ponder is that, although this Revolution considers itself inspired by the movement of Imam Hussein, it has turned into a motor to inspire other grassroots movements in different parts of the world, especially the Islamic world. In other words, every uprising that is staged on the model of Ashura, will turn into a center for promotion of the ideal and values of Ashura.

When speaking on oppressive and usurper systems the name of the Zionist regime of Israel comes to the mind as the most bestial system in the current era. The regime has occupied Palestine through brute force and massacre of its people. The fabricated regime has imprisoned thousands of Palestinian s in its dungeons and expelled millions of them from their ancestral land. The oppressed Palestinian nation, like Imam Hussein, has embarked on defending their land and identity with bare hands. But some of the cowardly leaders of Palestine have connived with the Zionists and granted them ample concessions. This is the way that Imam Hussein decisively rejected compromise and submission, saying, "Beware that the mean (Yazid) son of the mean (Muawiyah) has put me in a dilemma; to choose either the sword or humility' while too far from us is humility."

The Palestinian people have rejected any submission to the fake Zionist regime and started their Intifada years ago. This great uprising is similar to Ashura from numerous aspects. First, it is uncompromising against the oppressive and usurper Zionist regime. Secondly, it seeks truth. Thirdly, it is in pursuit of justice.

Another feature of the Palestinian Intifada is that it has firmly stood, with bare hands, in the face of the armed-to-the-teeth enemy who enjoys the full support of the world powers, especially the Great Satan (the US). What is more regrettable is the fact, except few Arab countries, all of them have betrayed to the Arab cause and become the boot-lickers of the Zionist enemy. This reminds us of Imam Hussein (AS) who fought the enemy with a handful of companions while those who had invited to Iraq breached their covenant, and in violation of their signatures, joined the godless Yazid to fight the Prophet's younger grandson and third infallible successor. The divine uprising of Imam Hussein (AS) achieved its lofty goals with trust in God and in pursuit of His satisfaction. The Palestinian people, too, consider God as their support and refuge and have little trust in foreign support.

The pressures and hardships inflicted by the enemy, like the siege and banning water for the family and troop of Imam Hussein, failed to deflect him from his uprising and surrender. Palestinians, too, have endured carnage, imprisonment, torture, destruction of homes, burning of farms, and myriads of other crimes by the Zionist regime; but have not kowtowed to the illegal demands of the regime.

Another movement that has been shaped on the pattern of the Ashura against usurpation and bullying of the brutal regime in Tel Aviv, is the Islamic Resistance of Lebanon which has been directly inspired by the Islamic Revolution in Iran.

Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah, Leader of the Lebanese Hezbollah, has repeatedly stressed, "We recognized Imam Hussein and loved him and pledged allegiance with him via our resistance in the battlefield."

When the combatants of the Lebanese Islamic Resistance started their fight in their country, in the form of Hezbollah, against the Zionist military, they were small in number and had few outdated arms. Yet, marching in the footsteps of Imam Hussein, they continued fighting the enemy so that in 2000, they expelled Zionist usurpers from their soil. The faith and bravery of the Hezbollah combatants spring from the faith and valour of Imam Hussein's companions. That's why the Zionist have so far shunned to confront them directly. The anti-terrorist movement of Hezbollah has proved that it marches in the footsteps of Imam Hussein (AS) and will never accept compromise and humility as its support is the source of every power, God. In view of this, Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah expressly says, "I say to all who plan for killing us that, so far, we have emerged with full strength because we have the spirit of intransigence and this is the very spirit that Imam Hussein showed on the day of Ashura while saying, 'Too far from us is humility.'"

These features have made Hezbollah an effective and popular power both in Lebanon and abroad.

US-Zionist Threats Against Iran and Hizbullah

Editor

The threat of military force is usually effective only as long as it is not used. Once resorted to, the aggressor’s advantage in material superiority and preponderance of firepower become secondary to the outcome of the larger struggle. Examples abound.

The US learned this the hard way in Vietnam and Iraq, and is now being taught the same lesson in Afghanistan. Zionist Israel discovered the limits of firepower against Hizbullah in Lebanon in 2006. Given their repeated failures, why are the US and Zionist Israel now threatening Islamic Iran, a far more formidable power than those the twin evil regimes have confronted in the past? That old habits die hard is well recognized. Threats and bullying are what the imperialists and Zionists are used to. They are quick to resort to brute force against very weak opponents. After getting a bloody nose repeatedly, the Americans now indulge in economic warfare through sanctions and currency manipulations. Whenever they get an itch, the Zionists attack the two million besieged defenceless inhabitants of Gaza.

In view of the rising crescendo of war hysteria against Islamic Iran, let us consider what a possible war scenario would be. But first, we must mention what the Rahbar, Imam Seyyed Ali Khamenei said last month. He dismissed the possibility of war while ruling out any talks with the US following Donald Trump’s offer, “There will be no war and I forbid any talks with the US.” The Rahbar’s rejection of talks with the US was based on sound reasoning: Uncle Sam is neither honest nor credible. Lying and cheating are part of his DNA.

Returning to the possibility of war let us suppose Israel and/or the US were to attack Hizbullah or Islamic Iran. Responding to Trump’s threats, General Qassem Soleimani, Commander of the Quds Force warned the US, “You can start a war but we will finish it.” Unlike the Americans and Zionists, Iranians do not make empty threats. Lest people forget, this month (September) marks the 38th anniversary of Iraq’s invasion of Islamic Iran. For eight years, Iran single handedly defended itself against the combined might of the Arabian regimes and their Western backers, as well as the Soviet Union. This epic defence is etched in the memory of every Iranian.

So what should we make of US-Zionist threats? Many Israelis, especially former military commanders among them General Ehud Barak, have admitted that Israel lost to Hizbullah in the 2006 war. Today, Hizbullah has a much larger arsenal of missiles — 130,000 according to most estimates — than it had in 2006. And in the best possible scenario, the Israeli Iron Dome would be able to intercept only 70% of missiles. If 30% of the missiles get through, that means some 39,000 missiles will rain down on Israel.

Hizbullah Secretary General Sayyid Hasan Nasrullah has warned that if Israel were to attack Lebanon’s civilian infrastructure as it did in 2006, Hizbullah would retaliate and hit Israeli cities. Imagine Hizbullah missiles hitting Tel Aviv, Haifa, or the illegal squatter colonies in the West Bank. There would be pandemonium. Last July after Israel bombed a Syrian military base, the latter retaliated by firing missiles into the Occupied Golan Heights with Zionist squatters scurrying into bomb shelters. Israel turned to Russia begging it to stop the Syrians promising not to attack their bases anymore!

Israel is extremely vulnerable. The Dimona nuclear plant and its chemical weapons factories in Haifa are within range of Hizbullah and Iranian missiles. Imagine a mushroom cloud over Tel Aviv or poison gas release over Haifa. Israel’s nuclear and chemical weapons have become millstones around its neck.

The Zionists are cowards. They attack weak opponents but are unable to take punishment. Both Israel and the US prefer short, sharp wars; destroy the opponent’s infrastructure and then call for a ceasefire. If the war lasts more than two weeks, they are in trouble. Hizbullah and Iran would not allow them to determine the duration of war, if the imperialists and Zionists blunder into launching one.

More than 90% of Israelis today have dual citizenship compared to only 35% in 2006. It shows they have no faith in their government or military. It is no fun having to scramble into bomb shelters, with disruption in electricity and water supplies as well as food shortages for weeks. When greener pastures are available elsewhere, why stay in a miserable ghetto like Israel.

Trump and Netanyahu, be careful; be very, very careful. Don’t even dream of attacking Iran or Hizbullah or you will wake up apologizing! But that will not save your thick hides.

 

Editor

Armed Struggle Only Solution to End Palestinian Plight

The plight of the Palestinians knows no end. Not a day passes when they are not targeted by the usurpers of their homeland, whether in besieged Gaza, whether in the West Bank, or whether in the occupied Islamic holy city of Bayt al-Moqaddas.

They are killed like sitting ducks by the Zionist soldiers or the Jewish settlers streaming in illegally from various parts of the world to seize the lands of the Palestinians and to practice their skills with newly acquired rifles by taking potshots at the helpless men, women, and children. 

And if the Palestinians dare to defend themselves, they are branded ‘terrorists’ and denounced as ‘heartless brutes’, with the western media joining the Zionists to highlight ‘violent crimes’ against the ‘peaceful’ and ‘peace-loving’ Israelis. 

The UN, especially its Security Council, looks the other way, while the regimes ruling the Arab states have no interest, other than lip service, for the chronic question of Palestine.
This indifference has emboldened the Zionists to trespass with impunity on the sacred sites of Islam in the usurped land, as was evident the other day when soldiers and the so-called settlers joined together to desecrate the holy precincts of al-Aqsa Mosque.

Day before yesterday, Palestinian worshippers gathering for the weekly Friday congregational prayer at Islam’s third holiest site were barred by the Zionist soldiers, who closed the gates and fired teargas shells and live ammunition at the helpless protestors, accusing them of pelting stones and throwing combustibles.

It is obvious that no true Muslim will resort to such violence at a holy site and if there were such incidents as claimed by the Zionists then this should be the dirty work of the illegal Jewish settlers clamouring for destruction of the sacred Islamic precincts and the building of a temple in its place.

Not an eyebrow was raised by Arab reactionary regimes at the latest sacrilege in Occupied Bayt al-Moqaddas, or the unabated killing of peaceful protestors in Gaza by the Zionists, while the Saudis and Emiratis continued to shed Muslim blood in Yemen while labelling all sorts of wild accusations against the Islamic Republic of Iran for its defence of the oppressed and the downtrodden.

It is time for the Palestinians to realize that mere protests in Bayt al-Moqaddas, stone-throwing at the heavily armed Zionists in the West Bank, and combustible kites coupled with a few crude rockets fired at the occupiers of their homelands from Gaza, although commendable acts, are not enough to scare their enemies, let alone drive them away from the usurped land of Palestine.

They should take a leaf from the uncompromising spirit and innovative methods of Lebanon’s legendry anti-terrorist movement, the Hezbollah, or the indomitable heroism of Yemen’s popular Ansarallah Movement against invaders possessing state-of-the-art military technology.

In other words, only a well-organized armed struggle with asymmetric forms of modern warfare, including guided missiles and remote-controlled radar-evading drones, is the only solution to redress their plight that requires further sacrifices in view of the savage racist and terroristic nature of Israel, which eventually will be.

This technology, in addition to being available on the international market, can be assembled through accessible data on the websites, and there is no shortage of helping hands. All it needs is ingenuity by the Palestinians, as the Yemenis have shown with complete trust in Divine Assistance and full confidence in their own abilities.

It is certainly no crime nor terrorism for an oppressed, occupied and usurped people, to acquire whatever forms of defence equipment that is possible to procure through any means in order to protect their life, their dignity, their land, their families, their faith and their heritage.
The important point, however, is to be on guard against pressures, threats, and deception of both the implacable foes like the US, Britain, and France; and those feigning to be friends such as the UN, the Saudis, the Emiratis, the Qataris, the Kuwaitis, and the Egyptians.

In other words, unless the Palestinians resist and refuse with firm conviction any of those much-tried useless methods of talks, negotiations, and mediation that have yielded no results over the past seven decades, their situation will never change, let alone their steady slide into not just second or third class citizens, but slaves of the Zionists in their own ancestral land. 

Fortune favours the brave, and any laxity will be a costly lapse that might delay the march of the forces gathering in the vicinity of Palestine in scores of thousands for liberation of Islam’s former qibla.

-Kayhan Int’l