Hezbollah Appears in Control of Lebanon
Associated Press (excerpt) ^ | July 16, 2006


Hezbollah and its backers, not the government, now appear in control of Lebanon's fate.

After moderating their stance in recent years, the guerrillas surged back to the war front with a surprise attack on Israel and a sophisticated arsenal, leaving Lebanon's politicians and army looking nearly powerless. The government seems paralyzed over how to deal with Hezbollah, whose Shiite Muslim fighters have had near autonomy in the south for more than a decade.

Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah acted Sunday like the man holding Lebanon's reins, though he looked tired and stressed as he vowed that his group had only begun to fight.

"We are in our full strength and power," he said on the group's Al-Manar TV. "Hezbollah is not fighting a battle for Hezbollah or even for Lebanon. We are now fighting a battle for the (Islamic) nation."

Over the recent days, the Hezbollah TV station has aired a constant stream of martial music and images of guerrillas firing rockets at Israel. Even amid Israeli airstrikes, Hezbollah managed to keep the station on the air _ aside from a brief interruption Sunday morning _ while Beirut-run utilities failed. Electricity remained knocked out across much of the city; firefighters ran out water to extinguish burning apartment buildings.

The Western-backed, anti-Syrian prime minister Fouad Saniora held back tears as he vowed on Lebanese television Saturday night to curb the guerrillas, desperate to stop Israel's onslaught.

But on Sunday, President Emile Lahoud _ a pro-Syrian and an ally of Hezbollah _ pronounced that Lebanon "will not surrender" to Israel's attempts to batter it into submission.

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