Hezbollah trying to demoralize the Lebanese Army

My latest at Townhall.com:

Arrest warrants were issued Saturday for 11 Lebanese soldiers over the shooting deaths of several Hezbollah and Amal rioters during last week’s clashes in Beirut (the clashes instigated by Hezbollah, which also spread to other areas around the country). Six civilians were also arrested and charged with, among other things, “bearing unlicensed firearms.”

Investigations continue, more arrests will probably follow, and Mahmoud Koumati, the deputy commander of Hezbollah’s political-wing, has called for the execution of anyone found guilty.

WHAT’S SAD is that the arrests of the soldiers – three officers and eight enlisted men – may have been a sacrifice on the part of the Lebanese Army (LA) leadership in an attempt to salvage the hope that Gen. Michel Sleiman might become Lebanon’s next president (The country has been without a president since November, and the complexities of Lebanese politics, death threats from Hezbollah, and the equally threatening hand of Iran and Syria have created an environment that makes it nearly impossible for the parliament to elect a chief executive.).

WHAT’S SADDER is that Hezbollah – the increasingly dangerous Iranian-funded, Syrian-backed, Lebanese-based terrorist army – has been pushing for the legitimate Lebanese army and police to fall on their swords since the rioting ended last week.

Hezbollah contends the clashes stemmed from “protests” over electricity shortages in Hezbollah zones of Beirut: Keep in mind Hezbollah often launches protests over electricity shortages, the rising cost of bread, the rising of a full moon, whatever – any opportunity to block roads, burn tires, and generally test and probe legitimate army and police defenses – but conveniently arranges those protests to coincide with other events like last week’s summit between Arab foreign ministers in Cairo.

Lebanese Army insiders and a parliamentary official have said the “so-called protests” last week had more sinister objectives.
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Full story here.

Sounds of soldiers training

Working here in my office on a cloudy, drizzling wet morning here in  Columbia, S.C.; listening to the distant staccato of machinegun fire as U.S. Army recruits – God bless them all — train in the rain at nearby Fort Jackson.

First military pilot flies F-35 Lightning II

U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. James “Flipper” Kromberg made history today as the first military pilot to fly the F-35 Lightning II, taking the fighter up through a series of maneuvers, and marking the aircraft’s 26^th flight.

Lockheed Martin has more.

Al Qaeda No. 3 Commander Killed

The AP is reporting:

“Abu Laith al-Libi, a top al-Qaida commander in Afghanistan who was blamed for bombing a base while Vice President Cheney was visiting last year, has been killed in Pakistan, according to a militant Web site [Al-Ekhlaas].

“Al-Libi was a key link between the Taliban and al-Qaida and was listed among the Americans’ 12 most-wanted men with a bounty of $200,000 on his head.”

More on Qassem

According to The Guardian:

“Sheikh Naim Qassem, [Hizballah secretary general Hassan Nasrallah's] deputy, pledged at a Beirut rally on Wednesday to hold on to the organisation’s two Israeli captives for as long as it takes to do a deal. ‘It makes no difference how many men we have to sacrifice,’ he said.”