Hezbollah, the Middle East power broker that until just months ago was listed by the United States as a terror threat, is capitalizing on the fear of the gruesome and barbaric activities of ISIS to build its own empire, according to a new report.
The Middle East Media Research Institute documents how Hezbollah, which has been an influence in Lebanon and its neighbors for years, and its “supportive media” now “have an interest in stoking fears of ISIS and Jahbat Al-Nusra among Lebanon’s Christian and Druze minorities.”
It is going so far as to arm Christians and allow them to set up militias and train them “to justify the existence of the organization’s weapons and its military involvement in Syria, to present itself as the only element that can defend the country’s minorities, and also to entice them to join its ranks.”
WND has reported already that Christian villagers in the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon are forming militias and are being trained by Hezbollah.
The report noted Hezbollah has been alarmed by the Sunni jihadists from Syria, so it is training Christian militias and setting them up in positions beside Hezbollah fighters.
Already, there have been tentative incursions the Lebanese army has deflected in the region around the Christian town of Ras Baalbek.
In the predominantly Christian region, Islamist fighters have threatened to attack churches and the Christians themselves. In response, the residents are taking up arms.
“If Hezbollah did not exist, it would have been necessary to create it,” said Albert Mansour, a former government minister who is a resident of Ras Baalbek. “The party’s existence makes the people – including Sunnis, Shiites and Christians of the region – feel safe in the face of this strange formation,” referring to the presence of the Sunni jihadist fighters.
“In fact, the Christians of Ras Baalbek and the Iranian-backed militants are downright friendly to each other,” Alessandria Masi of International Business Times said.
The move comes in light of warnings, on which WND has reported, that without intervention, Christians may be driven out of Middle Eastern Arab countries entirely within two years.
Lebanese parliamentarian Samy Gemayel, a senior member of the Phalange Party, descends from a historic Lebanese Christian family.
His father, Amin, was the country’s president, while his brother, Pierre, was a member of parliament and a government minister before his assassination Nov. 21, 2006. Samy Gemayel’s uncle, former president-elect Bashir Gemayel, also was assassinated.
Speaking recently on “Aaron Klein Investigative Radio,” Gemayel warned Christians and moderate Muslims are victims of two extremist forces fighting each other.
He stated: “Today all the moderates in the region are taken between two big extremists powers. On one side you have ISIS, and on the other side you have the Islamic state of Iran.
“So you have two Islamic states with two very extremist ideologies fighting against each other. And the moderates are stuck in a sandwich between these two powers.”
And WND has reported warnings that ISIS could begin attacking even the Lebanese army.
The deputy head of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, Sheik Naim Qassem, said ISIS is planning major offensive, and Hezbollah fighters were assisting the Lebanese army in repelling jihadist attacks into Lebanon.
Qassam’s warning recently was underscored in a WND report that some 3,000 Sunni jihadist fighters have gathered in the Syrian Qalamoun mountains bordering eastern Lebanon, poised to attack a series of Christian towns in northern and central Lebanon.
Now, according to MEMRI, Hezbollah hopes to gain the political support of these minorities, especially Christians who support the March 14 Forces and Druze who support Walid Jumblatt.
“On this matter, the head of the Lebanese Option Party, Ahmad Al-As’ad – an anti-Hezbollah Shiite – said: ‘Hezbollah operates among Christian, Sunni, and Druze youths in the Beqa, seeking recruits and enticing them with money … and scaring them regarding the future … In addition to Shiite youths, Hezbollah thus brings the other sects as well into the game of death [in Syria]… Hezbollah is flooding the country with weapons in order to [whitewash] itself and gain the support of the various sects.”
MEMRI continued: “Similar statements were made by the former editor of the London-based Saudi daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, Tariq Alhomayed, who wrote in a November 15, 2014 editorial: ‘Hezbollah needs sectarian backing to justify its presence in Syria and so it can claim that it is not the only element [in Lebanon] fighting in defense of the criminal Assad or the only element implementing the Iranian sectarian agenda.’”
The MEMRI report from E.B. Picali said as ISIS tries to impose radical Islam, the members of minorities not unjustifiably “have begun to fear for their future and even for their lives.”
There already have been several “incidents,” such as an August 2014 invasion by ISIS of the Lebanese border town of Irsalin.
Also, pro-ISIS graffiti has been appearing near churches and Christian schools with the warning that ISIS is coming and Christians will be slaughtered.
“In response to the situation, large parts of the Christian public have begun arming themselves and also seek the protection of various elements – including Hezbollah, which is exploiting their plight for its own ends,” the MEMRI report notes. “They have also held conferences and issued statements calling for religious tolerance and appealing to the international community for protection and assistance.”
There also have been incidents such as the burning of crosses by ISIS.
The report said while some Christians are arming themselves against extremist organizations, others “are counting on Hezbollah to protect them, and some are taking active security measures in cooperation with the army or municipal councils, such as patrolling their regions.”
The report continued: “Surprisingly, it seems that some Christians decided not only to rely on Hezbollah to save them when the time comes, but to join militias operating as part of this organization. Several recent reports in Lebanese media indicate that Hezbollah has been working to recruit large numbers of Christians to the Resistance Brigades (Saraya Al-Muqawama), which are comprised of paid fighters.”
from PropagandaGuard https://propagandaguard.wordpress.com/2015/05/30/hezbollah-marketing-strategy-isis-is-worse-than-us/
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