The seeds of the next middle east war

The Australian:

IT was supposed to be the day the maligned Lebanese army took control of the country's borders and policed the UN ceasefire.

Instead, the military commanders were left humiliated and troops stranded as Hezbollah told them not to disarm its fighters.

The first infantry units were preparing to head south when Hezbollah showed who controls the area by announcing it would not surrender its weapons.

General Michel Sleiman, commander-in-chief of the Lebanese army, and his lieutenants had been invited to join cabinet meetings to finalise plans to deploy the 15,000-strong force south of the Litani River.

But they were lectured by Hezbollah's two ministers in the coalition Government on what the army could and could not do.

In Beirut, Western diplomats said the standoff raised concerns about the army's ability to deal with Hezbollah. The Lebanese Government is left struggling to maintain a united front after unanimously backing the UN resolution on Saturday.

"The Government can't force Hezbollah to abide by the ceasefire," Economics Minister Sami Haddad said.

"It's unnatural to have an armed political party in cabinet that does not abide by what the Government of Lebanon wants."

...

Lebanon is going to have to decide what price it is willing to pay for Hezballah's aggression against Israel. If it wants to keep haveing to rebuild its infrastructure, then it can let Hezballah keep its weapons and positions in southern Lebanon and wait for the next explosion. If it is willing to live in peace with Israel, it appears it will have to have a war with Hezballah. The UN as usual is all posture and no performance when it comes to peace keeping, but the chances are remote that it will enforce its resolutions envolving Hezballah any more than it did with its resolutions with Saddam.

Captain's Quarters talks about the humiliation of Lebanon by Hezballah as the country tries to implement the UN resolution.