Escalation of Syria War: Ahmed Al-Assir, America’s Pawn in Lebanon

http://wchildblog.com/2013/07/01/escalation-of-syria-war-ahmed-al-assir-americas-pawn-in-lebanon/

Global Research, June 28, 2013

This weeks conflagration near Sidon, a majority Sunni city in the South of Lebanon has been on the cards for some time. Sheikh Al Assir, the instigator of the street battle’s with the Lebanese Armed Forces, (LAF) has been on a concerted campaign to incite sectarian strife and division between the Sunni and Shi’a sects in Lebanon, with one major goal; to draw Hezbollah into a sectarian-based conflict.

Many commentators on Lebanon have pointed out that contrary to his overt actions and rhetoric, Al-Assir does not enjoy a wide following or support base in Lebanon; he is a pawn that is being fomented and most likely funded by outside actors. These actors share the common goal of removing or weakening Hezbollah; a goal that is also synonymous with certain global actors’ – F.UK.US/GCC/Israel/Turkey- desires and covert policies in the region, the results of which have been ongoing in Syria for the best part of two years.

The street battles that occurred in Saida were planned in advance. There have been several attempts in the last few weeks by Al-Assir and his armed Salafist followers to deploy in the streets of Saida, this can be seen as a test of reactions and capabilities to withstand an armed uprising of sorts; a reaction from both the Lebanese Army, and from Hezbollah. In public speeches and rallies, Al-Assir and his followers have been actively attempting to incite a reaction from Hezbollah, who to the time of writing have refrained from openly hostile retaliation against Al-Assir. In Nassrallah’s latest speeches, he specifically called upon his followers and the people of Lebanon to refrain from sectarian language, indeed, in many of his latest statements, Nasrallah has made efforts to rally against any sectarian reference.

The usual suspects: Western corporate journalists and think-tankers alike, immediately jumped at the opportunity when the fighting occurred to spout totally baseless claims such as: “hundreds of Hezbollah fighters attacking Al-Assirs mosque” and “Hezbollah ‘leading the battle’”. Again these ‘reporters’ and ‘analysts’ relay false declarations with no evidence to hand, and no possible way of verifying them. Their claims have since (two days later) been thoroughly debunked, and it appears Hezbollah played no major role in the fighting in Sidon. Both the LAF and several leading Lebanese political figures – including those hostile to Hezbollah – have denied any Hezbollah involvement. There are many reasons (that even the occasional observer could point out in almost real-time) to refute these dubious claims. If Hezbollah’s own media outlets are not privy to their military objectives, why would Hezbollah fighters, or “sources” relay military maneuvers to reporters that work for outlets that are hostile toward them?