Hezbollah After the War in Lebanon
| Date | Friday, September 15, 2006 |
Middle East scholar Ammar Abdulhamid and Emile El-Hokayem, Fellow at the Henry L. Stimson Center, discuss Lebanon, Hezbollah and its two regional allies, Syria and Iran. Lebanon is just emerging from a devastating war ignited by Hezbollah's kidnapping of 2 Israeli soldiers on July 12. Despite sustaining considerable damage, Hezbollah seems to have emerged politically stronger. Its quick and flexible reconstruction efforts have highlighted the weakness of the Lebanese government in tending to the needs of its population. At the same time, Hezbollah needs to adjust to a new strategic environment in Southern Lebanon due to the deployment of a beefed-up UNIFIL and to the Lebanese government's attempts to reassert its authority. Emile El-Hokayem will discuss Hezbollah's role in Lebanese politics and make sense of its political strategy and ambitions. Ammar Abdulhamid will discuss the role of regional actors such as Syria and Iran. Is Hezbollah merely an instrument of these two countries, or does it have its own agenda and interests? How is Hezbollah coping with the fall-out of the war? How is Hezbollah positioning itself on the Lebanese political scene in the aftermath of the war? Is it possible to disarm Hezbollah and can its influence be reduced through international efforts?