Unease in Lebanon after Ahmadinejad visit (News Feature)

By Weedah Hamzah Oct 15, 2010, 11:51 GMT

Beirut - Some Lebanese officials on Friday expressed concern over the fallout from this week's visit by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, during which the hardliner predicted the demise of his arch-foe Israel.

'We welcome any visit by any leader to Lebanon as long as he supports peace and stability in Lebanon,' said former Lebanese president Amin Gemayel, who leads the Christian Phalange party.

'We are not worried about the visit itself but the developments after the trip,' he added, noting that Iran's ally in Lebanon, the Shiite movement Hezbollah, is 'defying' the work of a tribunal investigating the 2005 assassination of premier Rafik Hariri.

Hezbollah is leading the opposition against the western-backed government of current Lebanese premier Saad Hariri. The rift between the two factions has deepened after reports said that the United Nations-backed tribunal investigating the killing of Hariri's father was ready to indict Hezbollah members for the murder.

Ahmadinejad's two-day visit to Lebanon, which ended Thursday, was seen by many as lending 'support to Hezbollah against others in Lebanon.'

Former parliamentarian Mustapha Alloush, a member of Saad Hariri's Future Current Movement, stressed that Ahmadinejad's visit amounted to a provocation for most Lebanese, especially since he supports Hezbollah militarily, financially and morally.

'Ahmadinejad should have respected the feelings of the Lebanese, who reject dragging Lebanon into international conflicts as a result of his usual reckless speeches,' Alloush said.

The Iranian leader concluded his stay in Lebanon with a fiery speech in the south, where he was only a few kilometers from Israel.

'Let the world know that the Zionists will cease to exist. Today, the occupier Zionists have no choice but to return to their original homelands,' Ahmadinejad told a massive crowd during a rally in the village of Bint Jbeil.

'You are the victorious ones, and your enemies - the enemies of humanity - are on the verge of collapse. As you stand proud, the Zionist enemy is humiliated and defeated,' he added.

Ahmadinejad's speech prompted concern among United States officials and the Iranian opposition, with US State Department spokesman Philip Crowley saying Thursday that the South Lebanon tour undermined Beirut's sovereignty and the region's security.

'His presence there, we think, is a provocation that continues to undermine the security of the region,' Crowley said.

A group of about 30 Iranian journalists, intellectuals and academics based in the United States, Canada and Europe used the occasion to release an open letter to the people of Lebanon.

'(Ahmadinejad) is only using his trip to Lebanon for political show and he doesn't care about the people of Lebanon and Iran, their current situation and their future,' Lebanese radios quoted the letter as saying on Friday.

In Lebanon, meanwhile, Christian lawmaker Elie Marouni - a member of the western-backed parliamentary majority - said 'we agree with Iran and Hezbollah on being against Israel, but we disagree with them regarding ways to confront (Israel).'

'We aim at having a state that has a strong Lebanese army, while they (Iran) are empowering Hezbollah,' he added.

Ahmadinejad held talks with Hezbollah leader Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah before departing Lebanon. Nasrallah presented the Iranian leader with an Israeli rifle seized during the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah - in a gesture of gratitude and loyalty, the group said in a statement.

Some editorials in Lebanese newspapers on Friday said that the Iranian president used the visit to send a message to Washington that Tehran is a key player in the region.

The US and its western allies have sought to isolate Iran to force it into halting its nuclear program, which Tehran insists is for civilian purposes.

'The Americans are being told: 'If you isolate Iran, Iran will corner you in Lebanon and elsewhere,'' the daily Al-Anwar said.

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