Qifa Nabki
Hezbollah
Lebanon’s Political Honeypot: What’s Behind the Telecoms Spat
The following commentary is by a well-informed reader of this blog who goes by the pseudonym “Charles”. He was one of the authors of the excellent Lebanese Political Journal blog (largely defunct since about 2007, but a must-read during the post-Hariri assassination years), and his intervention provides some much-needed context on the larger issues behind the telecoms showdown … Continue reading
Nasrallah on Syria: More Equal Than Others?
The following is a list of Hizbullah secretary-general Sayyid Hasan Nasrallah’s comments on the various Arab uprisings. First one to spot the odd one out wins a plate of Syrian baklawa. (Source: almanar.com.lb) Tunis: “We must congratulate the Tunisian people on their historic revolution, their struggle, and their uprising.” Egypt: “In Tunis and Egypt, tyrants … Continue reading
Lebanese Stalemate: The Syria Theory
I have tried to resist viewing the current stalemate in Lebanon’s cabinet formation as the product of Syrian meddling. After all, there are more than enough local obstacles in Lebanon for Syria to bother getting its hands dirty. Some of these obstacles include: Michel Aoun’s struggle with President Sleiman over cabinet shares; Michel Aoun’s struggle … Continue reading
Nakba Day Controversies
A debate has emerged in the wake of Sunday’s tragic border killings, turning on the question of whether the commemoration of Nakba Day (which led to a fence breach in the Golan Heights [check the video out here] and at least ten people killed in Southern Lebanon) was orchestrated by the Assad regime and its … Continue reading
Syria: Conveniently Vulnerable Once Again?
A few days ago, the prosecutor of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, Daniel Bellemare, filed an amended indictment in the investigation of the 2005 murder of Rafiq al-Hariri. The only details reported about the new indictment were that it contained “substantive new elements,” which is what passes for breaking news on the STL front. Today, … Continue reading
Qifa Nabki 
And the people say…