publish.nyc.indymedia.org | Interviews with Hezbollah: Part 2 of a Series on Controversial Lebanese Resistance Group

March 05, 2005 06:33PM EST [general.addtranslation] Download Article (PDF) [ insert language bar ]

Interviews with Hezbollah: Part 2 of a Series on Controversial Lebanese Resistance Group

By Trish Schuh

"When the Israelis occupied our land and marched to Beirut, the UN and the whole world watched our cities burn, our farms and villages being destroyed, our children, old and young men killed. No one told Israel to leave or stop..."

Keywords: International Relations, Interview, elsewhere,

Interview: Sheihk Khoury Noor Eddine Hezbollah Political Council February 5, 2005 Beirut, Lebanon Â Q: The US has declared Hezbollah a terrorist organization. Could you comment? Â A: What others say about us must be backed by evidence. Many western journalists have said many things about us that are not true. They have portrayed us as if we are not human beings, as if we haven't feelings, imagination, love for life or family. We want to live in peace. We have children and friends and we like to live well. But the Israeli occupation that was in our area pushes us to resist because no one else in the world came to help us or forced the Israelis to withdraw. Â Q: How did Hezbollah start in the early 1980's? Â A: When the Israelis occupied our land and marched to Beirut, the UN and the whole world watched our cities burn, our farms and villages being destroyed, our children, old and young men killed. No one told Israel to leave or stop. We waited nearly one year. Then we saw they weren't going to leave. As Muslims, we believe life without dignity, life without freedom and independence doesn't mean anything to us. So we struggled to live as we like and push the occupiers off our land. Our resistance started as military, and became political. Our people needed social and educational assistance. The Lebanese government was so weak and no one from outside came to help us. So we built social centers in Beirut, the Bekaa Valley and elsewhere. So now we have social, educational and medical services- not just military. Â Q: But when Israel first entered Lebanon, they were welcomed by the Lebanese themselves. Â A: They were a relief from the prior occupiers, until they became occupiers themselves. Â Q: Were you behind the violent kidnappings in the 1980's? Â A: No. More than once Hezbollah leaders have denied this. Beirut was filled with many groups. Some with Islamic names were hostage takers. From the beginning, Hezbollah was not responsible and there has never been any evidence that they were. Â Q: What about your relations to Christians? Â A: Many claimed Hezbollah killed Christians. Go to the south of Lebanon and see how the Christians were defended by Hezbollah. Go to them and ask them directly. Â Q: Were you responsible for the bombing of the US marine barracks in 1983? Â A: No. We were not involved. Â Q: But news services got claims of credit from a group called 'Hezbollah'. Â A: At the time, we didn't operate in Beirut. We weren't involved in the Civil War. Our mission was the resistance in the south. Â Q: In January 2002, Israel and America allegedly caught Iran shipping missiles to Arafat for use against Israel? Â A: For years, Israel has accused Syria, Iran and Hezbollah when they are weak. They don't want to accept their crimes in the Palestinian Intifadah. Â Q: Is Iran training and funding suicide operations in Palestine? Â A: That is wrong. The Palestinians have their own training camps in the West Bank. They have much experience in military operations. From long before the Islamic Revolution in Iran. They want to destroy Iran, and use this accusation as a reason. Â Q: Are you connected to Saudi or Turkish Hezbollah, for example? A: No. We are Lebanese only. We are not responsible for other groups.Â There are many Islamic groups and most are not related. Hezbollah differs from most others. We have 12 members in the democratically elected parliament. We have good relations with the government and army. Â Q: A US senator hasÂ compared Hezbollah to Saddam Hussein. Â Were you also supported by the CIA like Saddam? Â A: No, never. Â Q: Have you used gas against your own citizens like he did? Â A: Absolutely not. Â Q: Do you ever behead anybody? Â A: No. That is haraam- for all- christians, muslims, and jewish. Â Q: What aboutÂ Ariel Sharon? Â A: No. No we could only take him as a prisoner. Our enemy has the right to fight us and we have the right to fight them. We have many rules in war. There are many limits. One, that they are human beings with rights. For 1400 years, even before the Geneva Conventions, Islam said an enemy still has humanity. Â Q: What do you think of Osama bin Laden? Â A: We don't accept him as an Islamic leader. He has harmed the perception of Islam in the world and damaged the reputation of our religion. Â Q: How do water resources figure in your fight with Israel? Â A: The Israelis want to tap our rivers. The Litani and Wazzani are ours. One of them originates completely in Lebanon and we are forbidden to use it. We aren't allowed to give our own water to our own people. Â Q: Â Do you have terror cells inside the US? Â A: We do not have groups outside of Lebanon, we are Lebanese. Â Q: If a peace deal is signed with Israel, would Hezbollah disband? Â A: These are issues that must be decided by the Lebanese government and we would follow that. Â Q: Are you growing drugs in the Bekaa Valley? Â A: Drugs are haraam in Islam. We helped clear the area of drugs- with the help of Syria. Â Q: The USA is trying to get Syria out of Lebanon. What will you do then? Â A: Fifteen years ago it was the US that approved Syrian deployment in Lebanon. Now Resolution 1559 is trying to take advantage of the situation in Iraq to have us expelled. Â Q:Â Israel has said you would use Iranian nuclear weapons against them via Iran? Â A:Â That is not true.Â Israel makes many accusations against us like this. Â Q:Â In May 2004,Â the US House of Representatives passed a resolution to attack Iran... Â A: America has enough troubles in Iraq. Change in the world must not come from military aggression. Iran is very different from Iraq. Millions in Iran will defend the country if under attack. America would make a big mistake to do this. http://nyc.indymedia.org/newswire/display/143296/index.php

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Re: Interviews with Hezbollah: Part 2 of a Series on Controversial Lebanese Resi

Mar 09, 2005 12:58PM EST

Lefty Lareaux

Wow, after reading this article I realize just how much I, as a left wing American activist, have in common with our friends with Hezbollah..... We have so many common enemies.....Now, I have no doubt that I would be happy to give my life supporting them and their fascist, religio-totalatarian vision of the world.....

Re: Interviews with Hezbollah: Part 2 of a Series on Controversial Lebanese Resi

Mar 10, 2005 08:48PM EST

sandra

All of this is bullshit!!! If someone believe one thing that is written here is because they are as stupid as the Hezbollah. How many christians have they killed. Of course if you ask lebanese christians if they got help from them they will say yes, because they are scared to say the truth. They know that Hezbollah will kill them. In Lebanon people are to scared to prononce the word syria or Hezbolla because they know that they will kill them. Lebanon is controlled by syria. Lebanese people are not even aloud to talk on the phone and say something about syria or Hezbollah because phones are controlled by them and they will kill them. How many people in Lebanon died because of them. And by the way the people with the Hezbollah that are doing the manifestation are not Lebanese people, they are all Syrian cheet!!!!

Biggest Opposition Demo Swears to Break Syria's Stranglehold and Lahoud's Regime

Mar 13, 2005 08:19AM EST

Mark

Lebanon's opposition staged the biggest show of force in the nation's modern history from slain ex-Premier Rafik Hariri's graveside Monday, taking a thunderous oath to break Syria's ruthless stranglehold and tear apart President Lahoud's police state of "secret service phantoms."
Between 1.5 and 2 million opposition activists converged on Beirut's downtown Martyrs Square and surrounding neighborhoods to mark the lapse of one month on Hariri's assassination. They shouted slogans demanding the resignation of all security commanders in Lebanon because of dereliction of duty in stopping the assassination.

The demonstration was so huge that Syria's loyalists led by
Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's Hizbullah and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri's Amal movement, who pose as standard-bearers of the Shiite community were dwarfed into an overwhelmed minority.

What made the trick was the massive turnout of the Sunni sect onto the streets of the capital to defy Syria's tutelage. Crowds from densely-populated Sunni neighborhoods stood shoulder-to-shoulder with opposition activists from various Christian communities and Walid Jumblat's Druze sect, chanting "we want the truth, we want sovereignty, we want Syria out." The Sunnis make up the biggest bloc among Lebanon's eligible voters.

One poster brandished among an ocean of Lebanese flags read "long live Syria inside Syria." Another poster read "President Lahoud, rest assured your turn is coming," a reference that he might be overthrown over Hariri's assassination.

Legislator Marwan Hamadeh, who survived an assassination attempt in October, formally opened the sit-in protest by declaring that the massive opposition was "writing the end of President Lahoud's police state and its Syrian backers." He drew thunderous cheers when he announced "this is the end to the one whose regime has been extended and to those who extended his regime." Hamadeh, a former minister under Hariri's premiership, said "the days of the secret service, the days of the ghosts are numbered."

Another moving address was delivered to the crowds by An Nahar's General Manager Gebran Tueni who declared "you are the biggest party in Lebanon. You are the party of Lebanon." He left the impression that the opposition Party of Lebanon was bigger than the Party of God.

Hundreds of thousands trekked overland and by sea in bus and motorboat convoys to fill the sprawling Martyrs Square and the nearby Riad Solh Square to the brim. Thousands upon thousands assembled at rooftops and nearby highway passes in what old-timers said was the biggest demonstration since Lebanon's 1943 independence.

There were outspoken charges before the demonstration leveled by opposition leaders, accusing the Lahoud regime of standing behind the assassination.

"The secret services have become a death machine, a death mill toiling without letup," had said Hariri's parliament bloc member Walid Ido.

Ido spoke on Hariri's Future-TV network screen a few hours after ex-Defense Minister Mohsen Dalloul directly accused the Lahoud regime of involvement in Hariri's assassination, revealing that a police unit assigned to protect the ex-premier was withdrawn a few days before the crime.

"Hariri had worked out an agreement with President Lahoud to have the police unit assigned to protect and escort him as a former prime minister. The force was actually put on the job and it functioned from Hariri's Koreitem mansion," Dalloul said in an interview aired by the F-TV Sunday night.

"When Hariri's aides managed to reach the official responsible for the protection unit, he said Hariri has plenty of money and he can hire his own security apparatus," said Dalloul, a parliament member who served as defense minister in one of Hariri's governments.

"The crime took place a few days later and now officials are boasting that 'the crime is behind us,' which means they have committed the crime," Dalloul added.

Beirut, Updated 14 Mar 05, 17:20
http://www.lgic.org/en/help_syria.php