Hizbullah Might Take Lebanon
The Jerusalem Post reports:
Publication of the findings of a United Nations tribunal investigating the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri could lead Hizbullah to violently take over Lebanon, IDF Chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi warned on Monday.
Earlier this month, Hizbullah boycotted a round of talks regarding the tensions surrounding the UN's investigation of the 2005 assassination of Hariri.
Ashkenazi told his Canadian counterpart Gen. Walt Natynczyk during talks in Ottawa on Monday that violence could erupt in Lebanon following the publication of the report which is expected to point to top Hizbullah operatives as behind Hariri’s assassination.
“The radicals are gaining strength in Lebanon,” Ashkenazi told Natynczyk according to an officer accompanying him on his trip to North America. “The publication of the report could destabilize Lebanon and be used as an excuse by Hizbullah to complete its takeover of the entire country.”
Ashkenazi claimed that UNIFIL was effective in disrupting Hizbullah’s activities in southern Lebanon but was failing at stopping the group from building up its military capabilities.
