As if the advice and probing questions of “Guest” weren’t enough, I’ve had to sift through hours of tape to bring you the best of “Biggie’s” take on the region. While that’s not a problem from an entertainment standpoint, it’s a little frustrating to listen to successive barbs directed towards you in what amounts to a [...]
Archive for the ‘Hizbullah’ Category
“It’s Time to Finish the Job:” Biggie’s Take on the Region (Christmas Conversations, Volume II)
Posted in Hizbullah, Lebanon, tagged Arab Spring, Christmas, Iran, Lebanon, Oil, Steve Jobs, Syria on January 19, 2012 | 2 Comments »
My Grandfather, Hizbullah, and the Hobbesian Jungle
Posted in Christians, Druze, Hizbullah, Israel, Levant, Shiites, Sunnis, tagged Beirut, Conflict, Hobbes, Levantine, Pluralism, Tension, War on August 20, 2011 | 1 Comment »
“You need a gun.” It was February 14, 2005. Hours earlier, in a massive blast that shook Beirut to its core, assassins had taken the life of former Lebanese prime minister Rafic Hariri and dozens more. Between bouts of shock and rage, many Lebanese pointed the finger at Syria, but others focused their attention on [...]
Deal With It: In Plain English (or Arabic), Hizbullah Rejects the STL
Posted in Hizbullah, Lebanon, Levant, March 14, Middle East, tagged CIA, Hariri assassination, Mughniyeh, Special Tribunal for Lebanon on July 3, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Mere days after accusing the U.S. Embassy in Beirut of harboring spies, Hizbullah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah took the opportunity to react to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon’s indictment of four Lebanese citizens (at least two of whom have ties to the Party of God). Greeting the STL… and Showing it the Door In his speech, [...]
Another Ripple: The STL Indictment Trickles Down to Lebanon
Posted in Hizbullah, Lebanon, Levant, March 14, March 8, Shiites, Sunnis, Syria, tagged Badreddine, Daniel Fransen, Hariri assassination, Hizbullah, Mughniyeh, Special Tribunal for Lebanon on June 30, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
After six years of delay and anticipation, the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) has issued the first of a series of indictments relating to the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri. According to an STL press release, Pre-Trial Judge Daniel Fransen has determined that Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare’s first indictment presents “prima facie evidence for this case to [...]
The Druze Question: Why Lebanese Sovereignists Must Reach Out
Posted in Christians, Druze, Hizbullah, Lebanon, Levant, March 14 on March 18, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Once again, the Druze of Lebanon have a pivotal role to play in their country’s destiny. The Druze in Lebanon’s Emergence Alongside the Maronites, Lebanon’s Druze community can claim a thousand-year presence in Mount Lebanon. In the 16th and 17th centuries, the Druze Emir Fakhr el-Din managed to harness Druze and Maronite support and carve out [...]
Patiently Waiting: Assessing the Slight Dip in American Assistance to Lebanon
Posted in Hizbullah, Lebanon, March 14, United States, tagged State Department, U.S. foreign aid, U.S. foreign assistance, USAID on February 15, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
The U.S. Department of State (“State Department” or “DOS”) has just issued its budget request for the fiscal year of 2012. Not surprisingly, the State Department is responsible for coordinating and leading all international assistance programs. For two reasons, this year’s budget request is particularly important. First, American domestic politics – under the twin impact [...]
The “Day of Rage” in Words and Pictures
Posted in Hizbullah, Lebanon, Levant, March 14, March 8, Sunnis, tagged Day of Rage, Najib Mikati, Saad Hariri, Special Tribunal for Lebanon on January 25, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
March 14 partisans across the country, particularly Sunni supporters of former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri, have been protesting what they believe is a political coup by Hizbullah. Earlier today, Najib Mikati, a billionaire Sunni politician from the northern city of Tripoli, secured enough votes to head Lebanon’s next government. Although Mikati had emerged as the Hizbullah-led [...]
Christmas Conversations (Part II): “At Least We Still Have Tabbouleh”
Posted in Christians, Hizbullah, Iran, Lebanon, Middle East, Syria, tagged Aoun, Christmas, Geagea, Hizbullah, Lebanese Christians, Special Tribunal for Lebanon, Stuxnet on December 28, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Another premium selection from 2010′s Christmas Conversations… Family Member 1 “Fuck politics. Lebanon is good for arak and kibbeh nayyieh. [The Lebanese] have been killing each other for generations. We’ve had a damn crisis every ten years or so. But we’ve still got our kibbeh nayyieh, arak – and tabbouleh and hummus – and that’s [...]
Christmas Conversations (Part I): “There’s a Plan in the Works”
Posted in Christians, Hizbullah, Lebanon, March 14, Middle East, tagged Aoun, Assange, Christmas, Geagea, Hizbullah, Lebanese Christians, Special Tribunal for Lebanon on December 27, 2010 | 3 Comments »
Christmas Eve rarely provides a respite from intense political debate in Lebanon. Indeed, with members of the family back in town, the holiday resembles a political brawl more than a religious celebration – or maybe, in the words of D.L. Hughley, “that’s just my house.” For the past decade, members of my mother’s family, their family and [...]
Get Real: Hizbullah Won’t Let an Adverse Indictment Slide
Posted in Hizbullah, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, Levant, tagged Hariri case, Hizbullah, Iran, Israel, Special Tribunal for Lebanon, Syria on December 11, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
The Lebanese never learn. For years, Hizbullah convinced many Lebanese that it would not turn its weapons against them. Shiites, Sunnis, Druze, and Christians all bought into that myth. Some believed wholeheartedly that Hizbullah would remain focused on Israel, while others saw no other choice but to acquiesce to realities on the ground. After all, the Lebanese had [...]
Caricature Constitutionalism II: A Critique of Hizbullah’s Emerging Legal Position on the Special Tribunal for Lebanon
Posted in Hizbullah, Lebanon, tagged Hizbullah, Mohammad Raad, Special Tribunal for Lebanon on December 9, 2010 | 1 Comment »
There are three problems with Raad’s attack on the STL Agreement. First, Raad paints over several important facts, which hit at the consistency of his otherwise impressive challenge of the STL Agreement. Raad conceals that Lebanon’s institutional paralysis had much to do with the strategy of negation adopted by Hizbullah and Amal to prevent, and [...]
Caricature Constitutionalism I: Hizbullah’s Emerging Legal Position on the Special Tribunal for Lebanon
Posted in Hizbullah, Lebanon, tagged Hizbullah, Mohammad Raad, Special Tribunal for Lebanon on December 9, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
At a press conference earlier this week, Hizbullah MP Mohammad Raad basically argued that the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) is unconstitutional, from a Lebanese perspective, and thus cannot pursue justice in the name of the Lebanese. To be precise, Raad and a retired Lebanese judge, Salim Jreisati, assailed the “Agreement between the United Nations [...]
Beirut ’09: Dancing in the Eye of the Storm
Posted in Hizbullah, Israel, Lebanon, Levant on August 26, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Right ‘Round, Right ‘Round
Posted in Druze, Hizbullah, Lebanon, March 14, March 8, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United States, tagged communal politics, Hariri, Jumblatt on August 21, 2009 | 1 Comment »
He’s done it again. Walid Jumblatt has left the March 14 coalition – or maybe not. Being the leader of the fiercely proud and historically influential Druze minority, “Walid Beik” operates to keep his community secure and his dynasty relevant. With that said, it appears that three trends have led Jumblatt to move away from [...]
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