Searching for Statesmanship in Lebanon

BEIRUT—Lebanon is the Middle East’s only melting pot. Never has the region more needed a peaceful oasis.
However, the country is a sectarian volcano. If the country crashes, so will the only Middle Eastern model for tolerant coexistence. Lebanon desperately needs statesmen willing to look beyond their personal and group interests.
Full-scale civil war erupted in 1975. That conflict ended in 1990. Since then, the country has suffered through conflict with Israel, spasms of sectarian violence, and now Syria’s implosion.
Despite all this, Lebanon remains generally free and uniquely diverse. But politics systematically undermines the country’s economic potential.
The implosion of Syria poses an even bigger threat to Lebanese stability. The Shia Hezbollah movement has directly intervened on the side of the Assad regime. At the same time, the Sunni party Future Current has backed the Syrian opposition. Tensions also have risen between Sunnis and Alawites, who support the Syrian government, and Christians, who criticize the Islamic State.
With Syria to the north and east, Lebanon also is vulnerable to a influx of violence. Military leaders with whom I spoke, generally not for attribution, acknowledged the challenging security environment. “We work hard not to have spillover from Syria,” one general told me.

Directly responsible for internal security is Interior Minister Nuhad Mashnouq, who emphasized the importance of cooperation with the military. While refusing to dis...

Source: Cato-at-liberty - October 21, 2015 Category: American Health Authors: Doug Bandow Source Type: blogs