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Politics : Sioux Nation -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: zonkie who wrote (74066)	7/24/2006 1:33:42 PM
From: Travis_Bickle	Respond to of 362291

Lebanese army faces no-win situation (AFP) 21 July 2006 BEIRUT - The Lebanese army, which risks being sucked into Israel’s conflict in Lebanon, faces a no-win situation in either defending the country or replacing Hezbollah militants on the border with the Jewish state. Lebanon has warned that the army will go into battle if Israel invades the country as it has threatened to do -- a defiance, which analysts warn bears little relationship to military reality. At the same time, Israel’s demand that the army replace Hezbollah in the south ignores the relative weakness of the official military compared with what some Lebanese, along with Iran and Syria, term Lebanon’s “national resistance” -- the Hezbollah movement. According to “The Military Balance”, an annual report published by the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London, the Lebanese army numbers 70,000 troops, including conscripts. The numbers are, however, misleading. According to Mustafa Alani, senior security consultant at the Dubai-based Gulf Research Center, most members of the Lebanese military do police work rather than that of a real army. “It is not a fighting force,” Alani told AFP. “Hezbollah is far stronger than the Lebanese Army.” The Military Balance lists the army’s equipment as some 310 main battle tanks, mainly old Soviet-made T-54 and T-55 models, 1,257 armoured personnel carriers and 541 pieces of artillery. It also has a paramilitary force of 13,000 men, a tiny air force of 1,100 servicemen and a navy numbering 1,000 personnel. Alani said the army has suffered not only from lack of support from Syria, which backs Hezbollah and pursues its own agenda in Lebanon, but also from a lack of financing due to Lebanon’s struggling post-war economy. khaleejtimes.com Although Lebanon is unlikely to send its army in force to defend against Israel, significant components of the army made up of Hezbollah members and sympathizers will continue to provide logistical and intelligence support to the Hezbollah cadres. The strain on Lebanon's armed forces seriously raises the risk that the army will disintegrate along sectarian lines as a result of the current crisis. stratfor.com While there is debate over the military's wherewithal, one thing seems clear: the chances of Beirut standing up to its thuggish stepbrothers are slim, at best. What's more, experts say, Lebanon's army - much as its government - may represent disparate and contradictory loyalties. Lebanon - which has long been in the unenviable position of chafing under Syria's thumb - clearly sweats at the thought of confronting Hizbullah, which enjoys considerable backing from Syria and Iran. Any action on Lebanon's part against Hizbullah would be a direct result of the pressure that Israel continues to apply through its military operations - and would represent an enormous departure from politics as usual. jpost.com