Iran Continues to Meddle in Lebanon

Having extracted Syria from Lebanon, Lebanese leaders are having to deal directly with Iran about Hizbullah, it's proxy in Lebanon. Hizbullah and Iran has made it clear Hizbullah will not disarm as the Bush Administration has demanded, at least not now.
In the article below Khatami seems to threaten "civil war" if anyone attempts to force the issue. US attempts to suppress anti-US activity in the Middle East has simply stirred it to a fever pitch.
Iran seems more and more bold everyday. They control the fate of Iraq and Lebanon, why shouldn't they be bold? The US is in no position but to attempt to destabilize Iran from within.
The Daily Star - Iran gives civil war warning to Lebanon opposition

Iranian President Mohammad Khatami warned Sunday Lebanon was susceptible to another civil war and said instability in Syria could lead to chaos in Lebanon. During a meeting with visiting leading Lebanese opposition member Walid Jumblatt, Khatami said Lebanon was "vulnerable" and risked the return of civil war, the ISNA news agency reported.

[...]
Jumblatt traveled to Iran in a surprise visit Saturday. Iran is a key backer of the Lebanese resistance group Hizbullah and Syria's closest ally in the region. Tehran has been vigorously opposing international pressure on Damascus and the pressure to disarm Hizbullah in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1559.


According to a leading member of Jumblatt's Progressive Socialist Party, Wael Bou Faour, the Druze leader had headed to Iran to discuss ways in which Hizbullah could be protected. He said: "In our contacts with Khatami and the Europeans, we are trying to balance the U.S. pressure in an effort to protect Hizbullah."


Jumblatt was in Strasbourg, France last week to meet with members of the European Union Parliament also in an effort to keep the Lebanese resistance party's name off Europe's list of terrorist groups.

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Copyright (c) 2005 The Daily Star
Monday, April 25, 2005
Iran gives civil war warning to Lebanon opposition
Jumblatt meets with Khatami
By Mayssam Zaaroura
Daily Star staff
TEHRAN: Iranian President Mohammad Khatami warned Sunday Lebanon was susceptible to another civil war and said instability in Syria could lead to chaos in Lebanon.
During a meeting with visiting leading Lebanese opposition member Walid Jumblatt, Khatami said Lebanon was "vulnerable" and risked the return of civil war, the ISNA news agency reported.
"The possibility exists of an aggravation of divisions which could transform into a civil war," Khatami was quoted as telling Jumblatt, a leading figure in the campaign to end Syria's military and political dominance of the country.
Jumblatt traveled to Iran in a surprise visit Saturday. Iran is a key backer of the Lebanese resistance group Hizbullah and Syria's closest ally in the region. Tehran has been vigorously opposing international pressure on Damascus and the pressure to disarm Hizbullah in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1559.
According to a leading member of Jumblatt's Progressive Socialist Party, Wael Bou Faour, the Druze leader had headed to Iran to discuss ways in which Hizbullah could be protected.
He said: "In our contacts with Khatami and the Europeans, we are trying to balance the U.S. pressure in an effort to protect Hizbullah."
Jumblatt was in Strasbourg, France last week to meet with members of the European Union Parliament also in an effort to keep the Lebanese resistance party's name off Europe's list of terrorist groups.
But confirmation was not available that Khatami and Jumblatt had discussed Hizbullah.
Khatami said forthcoming parliamentary elections in Lebanon "must not lead to differences between the influential groups," and also warned "instability in Syria would be a catastrophe for the region and have harmful effects on Lebanon."
Jumblatt was told by Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazi "the United States is seeking to create a crisis in Lebanon to reap benefits, while the problems in Lebanon should be solved by the Lebanese themselves."
Earlier Sunday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi said: "Jumblatt is influential in Lebanon and this trip is important. Our policy in Lebanon is transparent and we have dialogue with all groups."
He added: "The Islamic Republic of Iran has pressed that [the Lebanese] must pay attention to unity and cooperation and beware of plots by the Zionist regime, which will use any opportunity to exploit disunity." - With agencies
Copyright (c) 2005 The Daily Star