Washington is waging a covert war against Hezbollah, according to the militant group, which accuses the US administration of arming anti-Hezbollah militias and seeking to undermine the Lebanese army in moves which could plunge the country back into civil war.
"[US Vice President] Dick Cheney has given orders for a covert war against Hezbollah ... there is now a US program that is using Lebanon to further its goals in the region," said Sheikh Naim Qasim, Hezbollah's deputy secretary-general, in an interview in a safe house deep in Beirut's Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs.
The accusation follows reports in the US and British media that the CIA has been authorized to take covert action against the militant Shia group, which receives substantial military backing from Iran, as part of wider strategy by the Bush administration to prevent the spread of Iranian influence in the region.
According to the reports, US intelligence agencies are authorized to provide "non-lethal" funding to anti-Hezbollah groups in Lebanon and to activists who support the western-backed government of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora.
But Hezbollah accused the Lebanese government of arming groups across the country.
"This happens with the knowledge of the prime minister and is facilitated by the security forces under his command," Sheikh Qasim said.
The Bush administration set aside US$60 million to fund the interior ministry's internal security force, which has almost doubled in size to 24,000 troops.
Sheikh Qasim said there was a growing anti-Hezbollah bias in the security services.
"The internal security forces have not succeeded in playing a balanced role ... The sectarian issue is very delicate when it comes to the security services," he said.
Cabinet minister Ahmed Fatfat told the Los Angeles Times late last year that the increase in interior ministry personnel was to counter the growing influence of Iran and its Shia ally in Lebanon.
Sheikh Qasim said Hezbollah did not rule out another confrontation with Israel this summer and confirmed that the group was rearming.
"We are prepared for the possibility of another adventure or the demand of American policy that might push the IDF [Israeli Defense Force] in that direction," he said.
People can preregister to receive their NT$10,000 (US$325) cash distributed from the central government on Nov. 5 after President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday signed the Special Budget for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience, the Executive Yuan told a news conference last night. The special budget, passed by the Legislative Yuan on Friday last week with a cash handout budget of NT$236 billion, was officially submitted to the Executive Yuan and the Presidential Office yesterday afternoon. People can register through the official Web site at https://10000.gov.tw to have the funds deposited into their bank accounts, withdraw the funds at automated teller
PEACE AND STABILITY: Maintaining the cross-strait ‘status quo’ has long been the government’s position, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Taiwan is committed to maintaining the cross-strait “status quo” and seeks no escalation of tensions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday, rebutting a Time magazine opinion piece that described President William Lai (賴清德) as a “reckless leader.” The article, titled “The US Must Beware of Taiwan’s Reckless Leader,” was written by Lyle Goldstein, director of the Asia Program at the Washington-based Defense Priorities think tank. Goldstein wrote that Taiwan is “the world’s most dangerous flashpoint” amid ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He said that the situation in the Taiwan Strait has become less stable
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REASSURANCE: The US said Taiwan’s interests would not be harmed during the talk and that it remains steadfast in its support for the nation, the foreign minister said US President Donald Trump on Friday said he would bring up Taiwan with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) during a meeting on the sidelines of the APEC Summit in South Korea this week. “I will be talking about Taiwan [with Xi],” Trump told reporters before he departed for his trip to Asia, adding that he had “a lot of respect for Taiwan.” “We have a lot to talk about with President Xi, and he has a lot to talk about with us. I think we’ll have a good meeting,” Trump said. Taiwan has long been a contentious issue between the US and China.
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