Israel announced yesterday that it had killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut, Lebanon. Thus, once again, evil has been punished.
Unfortunately, it seems that this does not mean the complete destruction of Hezbollah, although it may lead to confusion and internal power struggles within the group for some time. And in this case, perhaps for a long time, since the armed forces of the Jewish state have already eliminated a large portion of Hezbollah's leadership.
It is clear that all of this will have repercussions throughout Lebanon. And certainly not in a positive way, at least if the country’s history continues on its current trajectory.
Like Israel, Lebanon has a long history, starting with the Phoenician seafaring people, followed by occupations by various states, and eventually gaining independence after World War II. At first, things looked promising, as the new nation’s economy grew rapidly after the war, thanks to the booming oil trade and financial services in Arab countries.
Even in the 1960s, Beirut and its surroundings became wealthy due to tourism and banking, and Lebanon became known as the "Switzerland of the Middle East" while Beirut was dubbed the "Paris of the Middle East." But then, at the very end of the decade, a fateful and catastrophic mistake occurred. In November, Lebanon's army commander Emile Boustany and the chairman of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO), Yasser Arafat, agreed that the Palestinians could establish camps in Lebanon.
From that point onward, the country took a downward spiral, culminating in a full-scale civil war in the spring of 1975. On one side were the Christian Phalangists, and on the other were the recently displaced Palestinians – who had been expelled from Jordan not long before.
The fighting spread across the entire country, with Palestinian forces joining the Lebanese leftist Muslims. Eventually, in June 1976, Syrian troops were called into the country, which brought peace to Beirut. However, the fighting continued in southern Lebanon, where Palestinians launched rockets into northern Israel, provoking the Israelis to launch military attacks in 1978 and again four years later, with support from Lebanon’s Christian forces.
As a result of all this, Lebanon’s own army eventually collapsed, and since then, the country has been in a state of disarray, with Syria meddling in its affairs. At the same time, Lebanon has also grown closer to Iran, from which Hezbollah—remotely controlled by Tehran—has developed into a significant and popular organization over the past decade, ensuring the persistence of chaos and continuous provocations against Israel.
The driving force behind all this has been the growing Muslim population, which has overtaken that of the Christians. Today, 32% of the country’s inhabitants are Christians, 32% are Sunni Muslims, 31% are Shia Muslims, 5% belong to other Islamic sects, and the rest adhere to various other religions. A return to being the Switzerland of the Middle East is not on the horizon.
Previous thoughts on the same topic:
Hezbollah Uses Human Shields While the Green-Left Looks Away
How Will Israel Benefit on the Explosions of Hezbollah's Communication Devices?
A new Government for Israel, but why doesn´t it solve anything?
