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Feltman’s Green “Op. Disfigure Hizbullah"… A Typical Flop

Feltman’s Green “Op. Disfigure Hizbullah
folder_openLebanon access_time13 years ago
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Nour Rida

Feltman’s Green “Op. Disfigure Hizbullah

June 8, 2010, during a hearing of the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations entitled "Assessing the Strength of Hizbullah" Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman uncovered what I dub as "Operation Disfigure Hizbullah" which turned out to be a typical flop.

Once again, Feltman falls into the trap of "self-condemnation" and "Confession of Failure" as after 6 years -ever since he was the US ambassador to Lebanon [in 2004], and after assuming his new post as part of the US State Secretary team- he reveals that Washington had paid 500 million US Dollars to disfigure Hizbullah in Lebanon but failed to succeed.

Feltman talked during a hearing of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations on Tuesday about the US failing conspiratorial scheme; that the U.S. offered aids and money to decrease Hizbullah's attraction in Lebanon.


"The United States provides assistance and support in Lebanon that works to create alternatives to extremism, reduce Hizballah's appeal to Lebanon's youth, and empower people through greater respect for their rights and greater access to opportunity. Through USAID and the Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI), we have contributed more than $500 million to this effort since 2006." these were the very exact words from Feltman's testimony during the hearing.

"These robust assistance programs represent one facet of our unwavering support for the Lebanese people and a strong, sovereign, stable, and democratic Lebanon. Since 2006, our total assistance to Lebanon has now exceeded $1 billion," he continued.

Since the year 2006, Feltman paid hundreds of millions to realize what he literally said; create alternatives to extremism, reduce Hizballah's appeal to Lebanon's youth, empower people through greater respect for their rights and greater access to opportunity. To realize these aspects, Feltman spent his grants in Lebanon, but a question remains here: who received the thousands and millions, and where and how was it all spent?

Tackling the first aspect (creating alternatives to extremism), we recall the phase prior to the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri all the way to the assassination. Ahead of the crime, Lebanon did not witness any manifestation of extremism that was present in other Arab countries at the time. But following the hideous assassination, extremism became a phenomenon in the country, and campaigns sprung "to contain" such a phenomenon.

Who was behind bringing extremism to the country? Who enhanced and funded it? Who was behind such extremism that serves no one in Lebanon but the foes of Lebanon? Who funded this "extremism" that came to light only after the Hariri assassination and facilitated its movement and protected it? All these are questions that pose themselves in light of all the aforementioned.

As for the second aspect (reducing Hizballah's appeal to Lebanon's youth), more questions emerge as Feltman's 500 million Dollars were spent in the different domains of life -whether the social, security, educational, media, artistic, etc- to distort the Resistance's image. In the very same year Hizbullah achieved its Divine Victory and changed the equation in the region, year 2006, the "Feltmanian" campaign seemed to have reached its peak -as it was most active then, while the resistance and Hizbullah defended the land and sovereignty of Lebanon and the youth became more attached and convinced of the resistance and its role.

To whom did Feltman pay the dollars...? To the youth so that they would give up on the resistance and let go their right to defend the land and fight the enemy? Or to the espionage rings and spies who sold their homeland for a few dollars? Might these have been as well paid to the "loyal customers of treason" as proves the Security Agreement Scandal that majorly aimed at hammering the resistance? What assures these sums were not used in political and media campaigns and the loud trumpets that labeled the resistance as "Party of Arms" or "Iron people" or other labels that aimed at mocking and demeaning the resistance yet were to no avail?

As we arrive to the third and fourth aspects (empowering people through greater respect for their rights and greater access to opportunity); those who served the American campaign only were to get the privilege of receiving services, not to mention that their requirements and needs were easily met. Tremendous numbers of opportunities were made available in associations and establishments, not any establishments but those that serve the American scheme and that are funded by "Uncle Sam's dollars", all in the favor of the American hegemony and against the resistance and its goals.

A little Pondering is needed here! There should be moments to think about those behind the scheme, and there should be efforts to uncover those manipulators and understand the secret behind the campaigns against the resistance, its party, and people.

Multiple and intense have been - and still are- the attempts to distort the image of the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon, yet the resistance and its popularity remains to grow...and glow.

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