The army command has dispatched convoys to pursue the suspects and it is waiting for the necessary political cover, in order to do its job of protecting ordinary citizens and their own soldiers from such attacks. (Photo: Marwan Bu Haidar)
It is time to raise some questions as to what the Lebanese armed forces command is doing to defend the country’s military and those who serve in it.
Yesterday’s killing of three Lebanese soldiers in Ersal was not the first incident of its kind. Three months earlier, the army was subjected to a similar attack in the area, when soldiers tried to arrest a wanted man.
The perpetrators practically celebrated their act in the streets, while the army command declared that it was dispatching convoys in the area to make the rounds and search for the killers.
And just a few days ago in Tripoli, three soldiers were killed and a hundred were injured at the hands of armed men, whose identity is well-known to the authorities. Still, at the end of the day, we hear the same refrain: The army command has dispatched convoys to pursue the suspects and it is waiting for the necessary political cover, in order to do its job of protecting ordinary citizens and their own soldiers from such attacks.
In Sidon, Salafi Sheikh Ahmad al-Assir has gone from blocking the streets anytime he wishes, to imposing a private security zone around his mosque, to assailing army officers who are in charge of maintaining security in the city.
In the latest incident involving the radical sheikh, his men surrounded a house in Sidon after hearing that a Hezbollah-affiliated official was there visiting his mother. When the army arrived on the scene, they chose to take the official out of the house handcuffed to the cheers of Assir’s followers.
When it comes time to make appointments in the military’s command structure, it is the political parties that have the final say, appointing officers on a purely sectarian basis. All this is done under the nose of the army’s commanders, including its chief, General Jean Kahwaji.
So, what’s the story?
Let us suppose that the head of the armed forces wants to extend his term in the hope of becoming Lebanon’s next president, as was the case of his predecessor President Michel Suleiman. Let us say he wants to use this time to build up relations with Arab and Western diplomats to improve his chances of becoming head of state. Is it right to do this at the expense of the army and people’s security?
It is time to be frank with the army chief and say to him that Lebanon’s security and the army’s reputation is at stake in these critical times. That the army is in need of a thorough restructuring after it has been filled with officers who are beholden to the wishes of their political or sectarian patrons.
General Jean Kahwaji – it is too early to be thinking about the presidency. The dramatic developments sweeping the region will change everything. Remember only that that you are commander of the army and that the Lebanese – after the collapse of nearly all their state institutions – look to the armed forces as their only salvation.
To accept the rules of the political game, and to allow them to influence the work of the military, is tantamount to ending the role of the army altogether. Officers should not have to choose between working at the behest of the politicians or being sent home to retire. No one wants to see the army humiliated in this way.
Ibrahim al-Amin is editor-in-chief of Al-Akhbar.
This article is an edited translation from the Arabic Edition.
Yesterday’s killing of three Lebanese soldiers in Ersal was not the first incident of its kind. Three months earlier, the army was subjected to a similar attack in the area, when soldiers tried to arrest a wanted man.
The perpetrators practically celebrated their act in the streets, while the army command declared that it was dispatching convoys in the area to make the rounds and search for the killers.
And just a few days ago in Tripoli, three soldiers were killed and a hundred were injured at the hands of armed men, whose identity is well-known to the authorities. Still, at the end of the day, we hear the same refrain: The army command has dispatched convoys to pursue the suspects and it is waiting for the necessary political cover, in order to do its job of protecting ordinary citizens and their own soldiers from such attacks.
In Sidon, Salafi Sheikh Ahmad al-Assir has gone from blocking the streets anytime he wishes, to imposing a private security zone around his mosque, to assailing army officers who are in charge of maintaining security in the city.
In the latest incident involving the radical sheikh, his men surrounded a house in Sidon after hearing that a Hezbollah-affiliated official was there visiting his mother. When the army arrived on the scene, they chose to take the official out of the house handcuffed to the cheers of Assir’s followers.
When it comes time to make appointments in the military’s command structure, it is the political parties that have the final say, appointing officers on a purely sectarian basis. All this is done under the nose of the army’s commanders, including its chief, General Jean Kahwaji.
So, what’s the story?
Let us suppose that the head of the armed forces wants to extend his term in the hope of becoming Lebanon’s next president, as was the case of his predecessor President Michel Suleiman. Let us say he wants to use this time to build up relations with Arab and Western diplomats to improve his chances of becoming head of state. Is it right to do this at the expense of the army and people’s security?
It is time to be frank with the army chief and say to him that Lebanon’s security and the army’s reputation is at stake in these critical times. That the army is in need of a thorough restructuring after it has been filled with officers who are beholden to the wishes of their political or sectarian patrons.
General Jean Kahwaji – it is too early to be thinking about the presidency. The dramatic developments sweeping the region will change everything. Remember only that that you are commander of the army and that the Lebanese – after the collapse of nearly all their state institutions – look to the armed forces as their only salvation.
To accept the rules of the political game, and to allow them to influence the work of the military, is tantamount to ending the role of the army altogether. Officers should not have to choose between working at the behest of the politicians or being sent home to retire. No one wants to see the army humiliated in this way.
Ibrahim al-Amin is editor-in-chief of Al-Akhbar.
This article is an edited translation from the Arabic Edition.