US congressman: Beirut is ‘puppet’ of Damascus

[Judi Lynn]

US congressman: Beirut is ‘puppet’ of Damascus
October 1, 2003



US Congressman Eliot Engel said in a statement Tuesday that the Lebanese decision to charge former Army Commander General Michel Aoun with sectarian sedition was “outrageous” and demonstrated that “the Lebanese government is a Syrian puppet.”

This was the first time a congressman has severely attacked the Lebanese government for pro-Syrian positions. It was also one of the rare times where American politicians have clearly commented on internal Lebanese politics.

During a phone interview with The Daily Star, Engel said his position did not amount to interference in internal politics of a foreign country, adding that he was not dictating to the Lebanese people what to do, but Syria is, and that he was ready to take a stand for people who were occupied everywhere.

“This is not (Lebanese) internal affairs, this is part of fighting terrorism and Syria is sponsoring the terrorist groups in Lebanon,” he said. (snip/...)

http://www.terra.net.lb/wp/Articles/DesktopArticle.aspx?ArticleID=110745&ChannelId=4


He's a Democrat, http://www.house.gov/engel/

[roguevalley]

1. Let's all get our war on.

*

[Aidoneus]

2. another pro-Israel politician trying to start trouble

they should just feel lucky that Israel was not held to account for all the incredible damage they did to Lebanon for decades and the thousands they killed there, yet still its deemed that another war has to be agitated for.. Perhaps Engle is just upset that the Iraq formula (turning the rightwing Aoun into the Chalabi-figure of this enterprise) is meeting early resistance.

[Lexingtonian]

3. Engel is Likudnik slime

And the discovery that Lebanon is a Syrian dependency, puppet regime and all, hasn't been news for, oh, 15 years. While that is regrettable, at least it ended the Lebanese civil war. Which in turn raised questions whether Lebanon was a viable state- it was probably too small and splintered to survive on its own. The only serious question was whether the Israelis or the Syrians would become the hegemon or split it between themselves

This looks like just another neocon-ish Jewish-American politician doing Sharon's work of trying to convince Americans to treat all Arab fighting according to the (often pretty horrible) practices of the region as "terrorists", the real point being to enlist the U.S. in the state of Israel's attempt to become the regional hegemon.

[Aidoneus]

4. at least he seems to have a sense of humour

or if not that, then a hypocrite with no sense of irony.

To Syria, he says "...his position did not amount to interference in internal politics of a foreign country, adding that he was not dictating to the Lebanese people what to do, but Syria is, and that he was ready to take a stand for people who were occupied everywhere.", then turns around and supports Sharon and the occupations over Palestine and Iraq.

[IndianaGreen]

5. Who are we to call anyone a puppet?

Like the earlier posters said, Engel is another of those Likudniks that are always doing the bidding for the cutthroats of the Sharon government.

[sistersofmercy]

6. Apparently, there is a water dispute betwee Lebanon and Israel.

I saw a report on world link tv, the Lebonanese have obstructed the flow of a river heading south and the Israelis are not too happy about it. Sorry can't remember all the details. But I'm pretty sure the Israelis have said they'll do what's necessary if the Lebanonese don't undo the dam. I wish the Israelis would leave Lebanon alone.

[Muddleoftheroad]

7. So, immediately Israel is wrong?

Nice balanced view you have of the water battle. Shared water is exactly that, shared. The Lebanese have a different view.

As for puppets, Lebanon doesn't even reach that high. It is Syrian, bought and paid for.

[Aidoneus]

9. Sharon's idea of "shared"

is "we'll blow you up if you try to use it". Thankfully he seems to have been talked down from that, for now anyway. The South was treated to remarkably sadistic treatment in the years under occupation; the way that the water issue was handled by the GOI showed that such a heavy handed outlook had not ended, to the point where Lebanese people merely developing their own lands meant a casus belli for war.

Such threats were a petty and disgraceful show of aggression, and it surprises me little that you do not hesitate in jumping to its defense.

[Muddleoftheroad]

11. Lebanon Does Not Truly Exist

All that exists is some territory that is run by Syria and called by another name. To see actions from that entity designed to create discord and make Israel look bad or cause it harm surprises me not at all.

[Aidoneus]

13. oh.. how silly of me

It was really all just some sordid conspiracy to make Israel look bad.. :eyes:

Sometimes this is like talking to the Spartacist League about the USSR.. instructive in a sense, but ultimately perplexing.

[lumpy]

15. Israel does a fine job of 'looking bad'

without any help from Syria or anyone else.

[Aidoneus]

8. "obstructed"?

the water is theirs to use by previous agreements, the Lebanese state just never utilized it before to develop the lands there as the people now are (the South of Lebanon, overwhelmingly Shia, never received too much attention when the national state was controlled mostly by the Maronite Christians & Sunnites, though that has been changed and the peoples of the South are more assertive).

Naturally, the Israelis overreacted and threatened war when the Wazzani project (I assume that's what you're referring to) was first beginning, but that's nothing surprising since it seems to be the answer of choice to everything..

[Tempest]

10. I believe it is Israel doing the obstructing

Israel started a damming project which would have diverted water away from Lebanon. Lebanon threatened to destroy the project and Israel stopped working on it.

[JohnyCanuck]

12. If we are going to play the puppet game.

I say Washington is a puppet of Tel Aviv and Dubya is a puppet of PNAC.

[lumpy]

14. And Engel is Sharon's puppet obviously.

If American activist Jews really wanted to further the future of Israel they would be calling for a change of administration in Israel and condemning the aggressive policies of Sharon. Sharon has irreparably blackened Israel's image and the Jewish cause is going down the tube. The impression given by supporting Israel's leadership amounts to Arab-hating-baiting.