USCFL- U.S Committee for a Free Lebanon HomePage

“The Most Important Organization affecting America's relationship with Lebanon" - The New York Sun -

U.S. Acts Against Groups Aiding Hizbullah - Jeannine Aversa
The U.S. Treasury Department took action Tuesday against the Martyrs Foundation and Goodwill Charitable Organization of Dearborn, Mich., an Iran-based foundation, for allegedly providing support to the terrorist group Hizbullah. FBI agents seized files, paperwork and financial records. "We will not allow organizations that support terrorism to raise money in the United States," said Stuart Levey, the Treasury Department's under secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence. (AP/Washington Post)

U.S. Warns of Stronger Al-Qaeda - Spencer S. Hsu and Walter Pincus
A threat assessment compiled by the National Counterterrorism Center, titled "Al-Qaeda Better Positioned to Strike the West," concludes that the group has significantly rebuilt itself despite concerted U.S. attempts to smash the network. While asserting that al-Qaeda is still considerably weaker than it was before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, the report concludes that the group is stronger than it has been in years. The CIA's deputy director for intelligence, John A. Kringen, told a House committee Wednesday that al-Qaeda appears "to be fairly well settled into the safe haven in the ungoverned spaces of Pakistan." Thomas Fingar, deputy director of national intelligence for analysis, said, "sooner or later, you have to quit permitting them [al-Qaeda] to have a safe haven the! re," but warned that "there is some risk of turning a problem in northwest Pakistan into the problem of all of Pakistan." (Washington Post)

Bush: U.S. Facing "The Decisive Ideological Struggle of Our Time" in Middle East
In a televised address Wednesday, President Bush said: "Failure in Iraq would be a disaster for the United States. The consequences of failure are clear: Radical Islamic extremists would grow in strength and gain new recruits. They would be in a better position to topple moderate governments, create chaos in the region, and use oil revenues to fund their ambitions. Iran would be emboldened in its pursuit of nuclear weapons. Our enemies would have a safe haven from which to plan and launch attacks on the American people. On September the 11th, 2001, we saw what a refuge for extremists on the other side of the world could bring to the streets of our own cities."
"Succeeding in Iraq also requires defending its territorial integrity and stabilizing the region in the face of extremist challeng! es. This begins with addressing Iran and Syria. These two regimes are allowing terrorists and insurgents to use their territory to move in and out of Iraq. Iran is providing material support for attacks on American troops. We will disrupt the attacks on our forces. We'll interrupt the flow of support from Iran and Syria. And we will seek out and destroy the networks providing advanced weaponry and training to our enemies in Iraq."
"The challenge playing out across the broader Middle East is more than a military conflict. It is the decisive ideological struggle of our time. On one side are those who believe in freedom and moderation. On the other side are extremists who kill the innocent, and have declared their intention to destroy our way of life. In the long run, the most realistic way to protect the American people is to provide a hopeful alternative to the hateful ideology of the enemy, by advancing liberty across a troubled region." (White House! )

U.S. Imposes Financial Restrictions on Syrian Institutions for Weapons Proliferation
The U.S. Treasury Department Thursday imposed financial restrictions on three Syrian institutions suspected of proliferating weapons of mass destruction. The Higher Institute of Applied Science and Technology, the Electronics Institute, and the National Standards and Calibration Laboratory were targeted because of their affiliation with the previously designated Scientific Studies and Research Center. A treasury official, Stuart Levey, said Syria is using official government organizations to develop unconventional weapons and the missiles to deliver them. The Treasury Department has the power to freeze any bank accounts or financial assets belonging to the designated entities in the U.S.

Rice Warns Syria and Iran over Lebanon Protests
U.S. Secretary of State Rice rejected calls to deal directly with Damascus and Tehran as part of efforts to end the crisis in Iraq and said the two states should have no doubts about Washington's commitment to the embattled government of Lebanon. "In no way is the U.S. going to get into a situation where it is even a conceivable notion on the part of Syria or Iran that the future of Lebanon would somehow be compromised for other interests of the U.S.," she said. "We understand who Lebanon's enemies are and those that are trying to bring down the Siniora government," Rice said.

Bush: If Iran and Syria Are Not Committed to Halting Terrorist Funding, They Shouldn't Be Party to Talks
At a joint press conference with British Prime Minister Tony Blair in Washington Thursday, President Bush responded to a question about the Baker-Hamilton report: "One thing is for certain, when people - if people come to the table to discuss Iraq, they need to come understanding their responsibilities to not fund terrorists, to help this young democracy survive, to help with the economics of the country. And if people are not committed, if Syria and Iran are not committed to that concept, then they shouldn't bother to show up."
"I find it interesting that when Prime Minister Olmert reaches out to Palestinians to discuss a way forward on the two-state solution, Hizballah attacks Israel. Why? Because radicals and extremists can't stand the thought of a democracy. And one of the great ironies is that people in the Middle East are working hard to prevent people in the Middle East from realizing the blessings of a free society in their democracy." (White House)

Don't Count on Iran and Syria - Dennis Ross
No one should expect that reaching out to Tehran and Damascus will prove central to fixing Iraq. The same goes for the commission's recommendation that the administration seek to jump-start the Arab-Israeli peace process: It may be a wise move for other reasons, and it certainly can't hurt our efforts in Iraq, but it isn't going to make an enormous difference there.
Singling out Iran and Syria gives them more of a reason to be spoilers and to up the ante for what they seek in return. The more we treat them as fixers in Iraq - when, in fact, they are not - the more they will seek trade-offs on other issues. Engaging the Iranians or Syrians should be done on terms that don't favor them so clearly. We should be prepared to raise the costs to them practically, not only rhetorically, when it comes to their bad behavior. To date, with both Iran and Syria, we have been speaking loudly and carrying a small stick. This needs to change. The writer is counselor and Ziegler distinguished fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

Panel Urges Basic Shift in U.S. Policy in Iraq - David E. Sanger
The bipartisan Baker-Hamilton commission Wednesday issued 79 specific policy recommendations that included calls for direct engagement with Syria and Iran as part of a "new diplomatic offensive" and for jump-starting the Israeli-Palestinian peace effort. Administration officials said they expected President Bush to announce his own "way forward" this month. But some suggested that the diplomatic strategy in the report better fit the Middle East of 15 years ago, when Mr. Baker served as secretary of state. (New York Times)

It's a Myth that the U.S. Hasn't Already Engaged Syria and Iran - Joel Himelfarb
America has been trying for decades to resolve differences diplomatically with Iran and Syria. The Bush administration, which has been repeatedly burned in recent years when it tried to engage these governments, prefers discretion and holding lower-level talks. These regimes insist on holding well-publicized summits that yield them P.R. windfalls without forcing them to substantively change their policies. The fact is that, since the Carter presidency, U.S. administrations of both parties have tried unsuccessfully to persuade these governments to end their support for terrorism and their efforts to sabotage Washington's efforts to facilitate peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors. (American Spectator/Wall Street Journal)

UN Seeks Dutch Venue for Hariri Tribunal - Marlise Simons
The UN asked the Netherlands to be the host of a new international tribunal to try the suspected killers of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri, a UN spokeswoman said. The Dutch government, although responding positively, wants its concerns addressed regarding an understanding of the tribunal laws, its financing, security for witnesses and tribunal staff, and a commitment from another country where convicts would serve their sentences. (New York Times)

Is Peace with Syria Worthwhile? - Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Giora Eiland
Is an Israeli-Syrian peace agreement, assuming it is possible, good for Israel? If such an agreement would be similar to the one almost achieved in 2000, it would be predicated on the return of the Golan Heights to Syria in exchange for: Peace reminiscent of the peace agreement with Egypt; security arrangements; a Syrian assurance that that it would not support terror against Israel; and an assurance that the streams of the Golan will continue to flow (cleanly) into the Sea of Galilee.
Israel should have reservations towards such an agreement since it does not solve a single one of Israel's other security problems. It doesn't impact on the Iranian threat or the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and it does not ensure the disarmament of Hizbullah in Lebanon. A peace agreement with Syria would not impact the relation! ship between Israel and the Arab world and would not contribute to our international legitimacy, just as the peace agreement with Jordan did not. A peace agreement with Syria would expedite the end of the artificial Alawite minority regime in favor of the Sunnis (which comprise 80% of Syria's population). When the Sunnis take over, with the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood, it is unclear whether they would adhere to the agreement signed by Basher Assad.
The most important reservation is security-related. Through in-depth familiarity with the security arrangements discussed in 2000, I believe that it cannot provide Israel with a minimal level of required security.

One Year After the Lebanon War - Joshua Brilliant
Hizbullah positions that were sometimes right across the border fence from Israel are no longer there. Instead, there are UN peacekeepers and Lebanese army posts. Yet Hizbullah is still there. Most southern Lebanese are Shiite-Muslims, like Hizbullah, and support that organization. In the past Israel waited until Hizbullah initiated a fight. Not any longer. Before the war there were border areas that soldiers did not enter in order to avoid friction with Hizbullah. The new operational concept provides that Israel would exercise its sovereignty up to the last inch of its territory. (UPI)

Shi'ites in the Lebanese Army Are Helping Hizbullah - Eliel Shahar (Israel Army Radio-Hebrew)
"Lebanese Army soldiers are assisting Hizbullah to introduce weapons into southern Lebanon," Israeli intelligence sources report. Some 40% of the Lebanese Army are Shi'ites who identify with Hizbullah and contribute to its strengthening, according to recent classified briefings in Jerusalem. UNIFIL forces have noted how Shi'ite soldiers of the Lebanese Army aid Hizbullah and they attribute this to family relationships between Hizbullah members and soldiers, and because many of them share a deep ideological tie.

UN Hariri Murder Investigators Say They've Identified Suspects - Patrick Worsnip
UN investigators probing the killing of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri have identified a number of people who may have been involved or known about it, Belgian prosecutor Serge Brammertz reported on Thursday. New information about a van used to blow up Hariri and 22 others in Beirut in February 2005, about mobile phones used to track him, and about Hariri's political activities had helped to pinpoint suspects, he said. The report said the Mitsubishi van in which a suicide bomber is believed to have set off some 1,800 kg. of explosives was stolen in the Japanese city of Kanagawa in October 2004, then shipped to the United Arab Emirates. From there it was sent in December to a showroom near the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli and sold. The UN team "has recently acquir! ed information regarding the sale of the van to individuals who could be involved in the final preparation of the van for the attack," Brammertz said. (Reuters)

How to Engage Syria, If You Must - David Schenker
The Bush administration took a pass on the Iraq Study Group's controversial recommendation to engage with Syria and Iran, in an effort to convince these state sponsors of terrorism to play a more productive role in Iraq. Instead, the president said that U.S. forces would "interrupt the flow of support" to the insurgency from these states. The White House's own extensive efforts at dialogue failed miserably, leading the Bush administration to the conclusion that engagement was unhelpful at best, and counterproductive at worst.
Some seem to argue that engagement can't hurt. Regrettably, the Bush administration's experience has proven otherwise. Meetings, in which U.S. emissaries delivered blunt messages to Assad, were spun by Damascus as "breakthroughs" in Syrian-U.S. relations, undermining t! he morale of the region's democrats and alleviating pressure on the regime.
Rep. Tom Lantos, incoming chairman of the House International Relations Committee, met with Assad In 2003. After the meeting, Lantos returned to the Damascus Sheraton hotel and gave an unprecedented press conference, reviewing the full litany of U.S. grievances with Syrian policy, from human-rights abuses, to active undermining of stability in Iraq, to Syrian support for Palestinian terrorists and Hizbullah. His courageous public message countered the potentially negative implications of the visit. Given Syria's continuing problematic behavior, engagement absent this public component risks sending the wrong impression and further emboldening this already dangerous regime. The writer is a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. From 2002 to 2006, he was the Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Palestinian affairs adviser in the office of the secretary of defense.!

The Case Against Talks with Syria - Ehud Yaari
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is apparently proposing peace talks with Israel for a simple reason: He is afraid of the international court that is supposed to be set up in the next few months to try the suspects in the murder of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq al-Hariri and other political assassinations in Beirut. The Syrians well know that the UN investigating committee headed by Serge Brammertz is taking its time because it already has enough evidence in hand for indictments against senior figures in Syria, including some who are members of the Assad family itself, or at least very close to it.
Basically, Assad is asking Israel to cover for him and his crimes, and for Syria and Hizbullah to be allowed to behead the Lebanese government with Israel's silent acquiescence. All this without a hint of a guarantee that As! sad is genuinely prepared to cut his alliance with Iran and Hizbullah and turn instead to the moderate Arab Sunni camp that sees Israel as a partner against the extremists. Would it not be better to continue insisting that Syria first shows some proof that it is serious, for example by reining in Hamas and Hizbullah, instead of handing Assad an open check? (Jerusalem Report/Washington Institute for Near East Policy)

Siniora Stands Fast - David Ignatius
Watching the demonstrations in Beirut with seeming serenity is Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, the man the Hizballah protesters are targeting. During our discussion on Monday he was the picture of calm and confidence. "We all have to realize we have Iran on our borders," Siniora explains. "But Iran has to understand it cannot impose things on the Arabs." The hard edge of Siniora's strategy is that he is prepared to play the sectarian game, too.
On Sunday there was a huge counter-rally in support of the government by angry Sunnis in the northern city of Tripoli. "They don't have the numbers," Siniora said of the Hizballah-Aoun alliance. The Sunni trump card is rarely discussed but universally understood: Syria, a crucial ally of Hizballah, is an overwhelmingly Sunni country. If the Syrian-Iranian alliance squeezes the Sunnis in Lebanon too hard, there is likely to be a backlash inside Syria. (Washington Post)

A Puzzling Run for President in Lebanon - Tony Badran
The keynote speaker at Hizballah's massive Beirut demonstration last week was a Maronite Christian, Michel Aoun, an army general driven into exile by Syria in 1990 but who has been oddly friendly with Syria and its local allies since his return to Lebanon last year. Aoun's primary objective is to become president (a position that by long custom goes to a Christian leader). To achieve this goal, he concluded a political alliance with Hizballah in February.
There's a cardinal rule in Lebanese politics that the president must be acceptable both to his own community and to the others. Aoun is neither. His positions have been antithetical to the Maronite patriarchate. Aoun's alliance with Hizballah and Syria's puppets has infuriated the anti-Syrian Christian community, which aimed much of its anger at him after the assassination of Maronite cabinet minister Pierre Gemayel last month. By agreeing to be the vanguard of a Shiite-led coup attempt against a Sunni prime minister, he has broken an unwritten rule against getting his community involved in a Sunni-Shiite conflict, potentially putting the already polarized Maronite community at risk. The writer is a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.

Iran vs. Saudis in Battle of Beirut - Simon Tisdall
Britain and other European countries are now scrabbling to shore up Fouad Siniora's shaky pro-Western government in Lebanon. All agree that this week's Hizballah-organized, largely Shia Muslim demonstrations must not be allowed to topple the government. Like Israel, the U.S. and Britain see the potential "loss" of Lebanon as a direct gain not only for Syria and its favorite militia, but more worryingly, for Iran. This places the battle for Beirut squarely in the wider context of a regional power struggle with an increasingly confident Tehran.
No less nervous about Shia Iran's supposedly malign spreading influence are Sunni-led regimes in Cairo, Amman, and Riyadh. Riyadh is indirectly confronting Tehran by supporting Mahmoud Abbas against the Iranian-backed Hamas, and in Lebanon, where it is bankrolling the Siniora government.

Next War with Hizbullah Inevitable - Majdi Halabi
Nothing has changed in south Lebanon. The entire region still belongs to Hizbullah and nothing happens there without its approval. The money available to Hizbullah there is doing its job, and the southern villages show absolute loyalty to Hizbullah and to Nasrallah. Even weddings are coordinated with Hizbullah so that no "undesirable songs" are played that praise another leader except for Nasrallah. Recently, many Hizbullah flags were hung on 10-meter high flagpoles under the open eyes of UNIFIL and Lebanese troops. There is no doubt Hizbullah is preparing for another war against Israel, with direct Syrian and Iranian military backing. (Ynet News)

CIA Gets Go-Ahead to Take on Hizbullah - Toby Harnden
The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency has been authorized to take covert action against Hizbullah as part of a secret plan by President George W. Bush to help the Lebanese government prevent the spread of Iranian influence. The finding was signed by Bush before Christmas after discussions between his aides and Saudi Arabian officials. It authorizes the CIA and other U.S. intelligence agencies to fund anti-Hizbullah groups in Lebanon and pay for activists who support the Siniora government. The secrecy of the finding means that U.S. involvement is officially deniable.
Bush's move is at the center of a fresh drive by America, supported by the Sunni states of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Egypt, as well as Israel, to stop Iranian hegemony in the Middle East. "There's a feeling both in Jerusalem and in Riyadh tha! t the anti-Sunni tilt in the region has gone too far," said an intelligence source. "By removing Saddam, we've shifted things in favor of the Shia and this is a counter-balancing exercise."

Hizballah Gambles in Quest for Dominance - Anthony Shadid
By mobilizing its rank and file and pouring them into downtown Beirut to topple the government, Hizballah has framed its pursuit for political power in the same martial language of this summer's war with Israel. A dominant theme is resistance to American influence in Lebanon. Banners condemn Jeffrey D. Feltman, the U.S. ambassador in Lebanon, who is often a target of Nasrallah's speeches. "The government of Feltman," one slogan reads, "We'll bring it down."

Hizballah Calls for Rally in Beirut to Bring Down Lebanese Government - Michael Slackman
Hizballah and its political allies said Thursday that they intended to occupy the center of Beirut beginning Friday with a huge sit-in that they said would last as long as it took to force the Lebanese government to resign. The sit-in would be the most volatile escalation in what has turned into a political death match between the pro-Syrian, pro-Iranian Hizballah and its adversaries, the pro-Western March 14 alliance, which leads the current government.
In a televised speech, Prime Minister Fouad Sinoria blamed Hizballah for dragging all of Lebanon into a war with Israel and for the "heavy price" the country paid. "I am going to stay in office and defend democracy and independence, and we will not be scared by their threats or terrorized by their threats," he said.

Iran and Syria Helping Hizballah Rearm - Elaine Shannon and Tim McGirk
Iran is smuggling weapons through Syria to re-arm Hizballah. Israeli military officials say Hizballah replenished nearly half of its pre-war stockpiles of short-range missiles and small arms, but Western diplomats in Beirut say Hizballah has now filled its war chest with over 20,000 short-range missiles, similar to what they had at the start of the conflict.
Over the past three months, Iranian Revolutionary Guard officers have been operating out of a military base outside Damascus from which weapons have been shipped across the border into Lebanon. Nawaf Obaid, a Saudi security advisor, contends that "a huge stream of trucks" has been crossing the border ferrying thinly disguised shipments of arms. Moreover, Obaid says, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and Iran's Ministry of Intelligence and Security are using the Iranian embassies in Damascus and Beirut as command and control centers - an allegation confirmed by Israel.

Hizballah Takes Aim at the Lebanese Government - David Schenker
In a striking departure from Hizballah's standard articulation of its raison d'etre as "resistance," Hizballah leader Hassan Nasrallah last week added a new domestic orientation to the group's agenda, linking the group's disarmament to the formation of a "strong, capable, just, and clean" Lebanese state. This call for clean government provides yet another pretext for Hizballah to retain its weapons indefinitely. Capping off his foray into local politics, Nasrallah commented that the Siniora government was not up to the task of reconstruction, and he issued a direct challenge to the Lebanese government. If the state fails to protect Lebanon, he said, Hizballah will again assume the responsibility. "We have thus far been patient...be assured that we will not be patient for long."

Maybe Israel Should Bust Iran's Bunkers - Zev Chafets
Israel is certainly thinking about how to stop Tehran from getting its hands on nukes. And why wouldn't it? Given the evident failure of American diplomacy and UN sanctions, Israel has two basic choices. It can sit and wait, hoping the Iranians do not drop a bomb on Tel Aviv; or it can preemptively attack, hoping to destroy, or at least retard, the Iranians' nuclear capacity. Israel is a small, crowded country with a very poor civil defense infrastructure and a population traumatized by its own recent history. Perhaps the Iranian government doubts that the Holocaust happened, but there are 6 million Israeli Jews who don't doubt it.
There are some who believe that it is in Israel's interest for the U.S. to solve this problem. But they are mistaken. The truth is, the U.S.! is not directly menaced by Iranian weapons. When President Bush says an Iranian bomb would threaten U.S. friends and interests in the region, he is speaking primarily about Israel. The Iranians frighten a lot of Sunni Arab countries, but they pose an existential threat only to the Jewish state. (Los Angeles Times)

Don't Count on Iran to Pick Up the Pieces - Kenneth M. Pollack
The problems in Iraq were not caused by the Iranians, nor can Iran solve them all. Most Iraqis dislike the Iranians. In fact, "dislike" is too mild a term. While Iranian support is no doubt gratefully received, the evidence suggests that it is now more a supplement than a necessity for the major militias. Tehran can influence the behavior of the Shiite groups, but it probably would have a hard time forcing them to do things they do not want to do.
The limits on Iranian influence are a double-edged sword. They mean that we cannot count on Iran to solve Iraq's problems, but they also mean that we need not offer the Iranians the world in return for their assistance. Right now, Tehran and its bombastic president are riding high in the Middle East, and they will doubtless want something in return for helping us deal with Iraq. The writer is director of research at the Saban Center for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institution.

The Global Reach of Iran's Ballistic Missiles - Uzi Rubin
Iran's missile and space programs are progressing with singular urgency. No other country in the world comes close to Iran in the number and variety of ballistic missiles in development or already deployed. Iran seems poised to add a cruise missile component to its strategic forces, and its development of a space launch vehicle may well be a harbinger of an ICBM. The range of Iran's missiles is likely to dominate the entire European continent by the end of the decade.
Heralding the missile program with a great deal of transparency, Iran has exploited it as a psychological tool, adding it to its force of "deterrence enhancers." There is some doubt as to the quality and precision of the more advanced missiles, with Iran's claims likely exceeding the missiles' actual capabilities. The writer served as head of Israel's Missile Defense Organization between 1991 and 1999, and oversaw the development of Israel's Arrow anti-missile defense system. (Institute for National Security Studies-Tel Aviv University)

To End Iran Standoff, Plan for War - Michael Rubin
If a peaceful solution to the Iranian nuclear problem is to be found, it is time for Washington to plan for war. Diplomats cannot break the current impasse simply by trying more aggressive diplomacy. Tehran will only change course if it believes it faces a credible threat for defying the will of the world. Perhaps it is time to stage war games and exercises in the Persian Gulf and on Iran's borders. Only the threat of force, and not the threat of UN finger-wagging, can persuade Tehran to stop spinning its centrifuges. The writer is a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute.

Iran Close to Nuclear Suspension - Bill Gertz
Iran is close to an agreement that would include a suspension of uranium enrichment but wants the deal to include a provision that the temporary halt be kept secret, according to Bush administration officials. The suspension of uranium enrichment by Iran would be for 90 days, so additional talks could be held with several European nations. Many U.S. officials are opposing the agreement as a further concession to Iran, which continues to defy a UN call for a complete halt to uranium enrichment.

Iran Introduces into Iraq Weapons Used by Hizballah (Middle East Newsline)
U.S. military intelligence has detected the use by Iraqi insurgents of Russian-origin RPG-29 rocket-propelled grenades, used by Hizballah against Israel's military.
The RPG-29, designed to penetrate Western main battle tanks and armored personnel carriers, was modified by and produced in Iran.

What's the most dangerous geopolitical development in the 21st century? Iran's emergence as the Middle East regional superpower. Why? Because it places the center of the world's increasingly stretched energy resources more and more under the influence of an oil-rich, fundamentalist, pro-terrorist, anti-Semitic regime that has not only nuclear ambitions but the means to realize them.

Iran's malign hand now reaches directly into southern Iraq, to Syria, to Hizballah in Lebanon, to Hamas in Gaza, and to the shores of the Mediterranean. Iran's long shadow now casts a deepening pall over the Sunni Arab countries of the region, including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates. All the Sunni gulf states have sizable Shiite populations, which Iran could turn against them.

What once promised to be a seed for democracy in the despotic Middle East, a new free state of Iraq, has betrayed every hope in an increasingly violent religious schism aggravated by Iranian meddling. The elections in Iraq led not to collaboration between different ethnic and religious groups but to a Shiite majority with a mandate to introduce what is, in effect, a radical Islamic republic.

The West will have to decide what is more dangerous - to attack the infrastructure of the Iranians sooner rather than later or to deal with an Iranian nuclear capability after the fact

We could start this opinion piece by saying "Here we go again" but that would demean immensely the life of Syria's latest victim Pierre Amin Gemayel who was shot down today in the Jdeideh area outside Beirut on the same day that the UN is to vote on establishing the international court to prosecute the killers of Rafik Hariri.

Lebanese and Syrian reformers do not believe in coincidences anymore when it comes to the regime in Syria. The message being sent by Syria's Bashar al-Assad is loud and clear: Stop the international tribunal or Lebanon will suffer the consequences. As if Lebanon has not suffered enough already.

The killing of Pierre Gemayel is a clear, multi-purpose signal but none is more powerful than the one being sent to the White House: You are impotent, weak, and unable to stop Assad from ramming his violent nature down your throat.

There is a point in history or in one's destiny when time simply stops. It stops because the question before us are of such immense magnitude that we find ourselves unable, not only to answer them, but more importantly to question why we are asking them in the first place. The useless killing of an innocent young and promising Lebanese politician, once again, is forcing us to ask the hard questions. It is one thing to believe that reforms in the Arab world, which could usher moderate Islam, freedom, and democracy, are taking a back seat but quite another to think that they are dead. Unfortunately, the White House response to Iran and Syria, except with meaningless words, makes us believe that they are simply dead.

What will it take for regime change in Syria? How many more lives? In Lebanon and in Iraq? Are we being naive to think that an international tribunal that may indict Bashar al-Assad will stop this murderer from another act of violence? Are we naive to believe that Assad will give a pass to Iraq simply because his foreign minister said so? Since when did Assad make a promise and stood by it?

The Iranian Mullahs are building an axis of evil that stretches from South Lebanon to East of Mashhad on the Aghani borders. Then, they will embark on sinking Afghanistan in the same quagmire that Iraq is experiencing; that if they do not build a bomb and use it against Saudi Arabia or Israel first.

The options are clear: Iraq, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, and Lebanon will either be destroyed or will implode within two years if we do not stop Iran and Syria today. The US has the capabilities to impose order but for this to happen, the President must be the Winston Churchill of our times. The Ahmadinajead-Assad axis of 2006 reminds me of the Hitler-Mussolini axis of 1938. Either we stand-up and collapse these regimes or we wait until disaster hits, real disaster that will make 9/11 look like a child's play.

The options are clear: The United States can no longer afford to look weak by seeking to "talk" to its enemies who continue on their path of destruction. When the stronger Assad gave sanctuary to the PKK, Turkey simply amassed its troops on the Syrian borders and in no time Assad capitulated. The US has no choice but to send its troops to be stationed on the Syrian borders from the East, from the South, and from the West. Only then, Assad will realize that it is in his best interests to stop his killing machine in Iraq, to quit Lebanon once and for all, and to draw a line for his support of terrorism all around him.

And if he does not, let the smart bombs fly. At least, it will disrupt the operation of the fighters Syria sends to Iraq every month to kill Iraqis.

USCFL Task Force: Iranian Mullahs Influence in Syria is Tipping the Balance

Syria's Assad has recently crossed a threshold in alliance with the Iranian Mullahs manifested by the fact that they are given a religious Carte Blanche in Syria. Unlike the son, Assad father never allowed Khomeini or the Wilayyat al-Faqih to have any influence inside the country.

Syrians have been observing over the last year a dangerous phenomena mostly witnessed by an alarming number of non-Shiia turning to Khomeini-style Shiia in return for financial rewards. Whole villages and urban areas are adopting the Hezbollah model whereby clinics, schools, and social services are provided by Iran in return for Syrians to convert to Shiism. Two months ago, two centers for teaching Persian have opened in Latikyia. Most of those converting are Sunni Muslims.

Assad is logically calculating that if Hezbollah, with its 15,000 fighters and a God-like following of its figure head Sheikh Nasrallah, can achieve with a $100 million a year the military prowess it exhibited against Israel then why not turn all of Syria into a larger Hezbollah laboratory in the hope of attaining the same results. However, as Ba'athists are infamous for their miscalculation, Assad is reasoning that Sunnis in Syria, representing 70% of the population, will stand-by while Syria turns into Hezbollah-country the way they stood-by while his minority rule pilfered and destroyed the Syrian society.

Assad has survived many dangers but many Syrians believe he has crossed a line that could spell doom for his regime. It is one thing to strategically ally the country with Iran but quite another to let Iran shape its identity. The anger building amongst the Sunni Syrians is taking a life of its own and the USCFL senses that this anger cannot be stopped if it reaches the boiling point. We are just at the beginning of a perilous curve that not even Assad understands its danger.

Scores of Syrians have been in contact with inside Syria, some of whom are some of the most moderate Ulemmas and Imams, have expressed profound resentment at the fact that Sunnism is under attack by Iran. Many have voiced the following logic: We see the next confrontation in the Middle East along the lines of Israel vs. Iran and we have no choice but to stand by Israel to protect our religion. This logic emanates from the fact that no Sunni Arab country has the military competence to stand-up to the Iran-Syria-Hezbollah axis and also because Israel, unlike Iran, is not interested in converting Sunni Muslims.

The world witnessed the beginning of this Israel-Iran upcoming confrontation when Saudi Arabia attacked Hezbollah's recklessness in Lebanon during the Israel-Hezbollah debacle rather than utter its usual condemnation of Israel or support Hezbollah as was expected of an Arab nation to do.