Lebanon PM Vows to Stand With Hezbollah in Event of Israeli Invasion

Expresses Concerns About Repeated Israeli Threats

by Jason Ditz, February 10, 2010

In an interview released today, Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri expressed growing concern about the number of threats against the nation made by the Israeli government. “This is something that is escalating, and this is something that is really dangerous,” Hariri warned.

He cautioned that in the event of an Israeli invasion, the government would stand united with Hezbollah to oppose the Israeli forces. Hezbollah was Hariri’s chief rival in the most recent elections, but has been part of a broad, albeit tenuous, coalition government.

The Lebanese government essentially stayed out of the war in 2006, when Israel invaded southern Lebanon and clashed with Hezbollah forces for nearly a month. Since the end of that war the nations have had a somewhat stable ceasefire.

But that stability may be coming to an end, as last month Israeli minister Yossi Peled warned that another war with Lebanon was inevitable. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insists that the war is not imminent, but the prospect of a new war, so soon after the previous one killed over 1,100 Lebanese civilians, has raised serious concerns.

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