(Foreign Policy) Randa Slim - The popular uprisings in Syria represent the most serious challenge to Hizbullah since the 2006 war with Israel. A regime change in Syria would threaten a major arms supply route to Hizbullah; deny the Iran-Syria-Hizbullah-Hamas axis its Arab linchpin; weaken Hizbullah's deterrence capacities vis-a-vis Israel; and deny Hizbullah leaders and their families a safe haven when they feel threatened by Israel, as was the case in 2006. In a recent round of interviews I conducted with Hizbullah officials in Beirut, all those I spoke to agreed that a regime change in Syria would not occur easily or peacefully. So far, Hizbullah officials believe that Bashar al-Assad will survive.
2011-05-05 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive