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Hizbullah Is Losing Its Ability to Intimidate Anyone
(The National-UAE) Michael Young - Lebanon is going through a terrible economic crisis, exacerbated by the resistance of the country's politicians to introducing reforms that would unlock financial aid from the International Monetary Fund. Such reforms would threaten their networks of corruption and patronage. Over 50% of Lebanese live under the poverty line, and many of them believe Hizbullah to be part of the corrupt political elite. Hizbullah's disregard for the discontent in Lebanon, along with its refusal to help revive the country through economic reform, has meant that it has poisoned its own environment, limiting its margin of maneuver on Iran's behalf. The writer is a senior editor at the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut.