In the midst of the complex crisis in Lebanon and in the run-up to the parliamentary elections, some sources are talking about the new US plan with its new tools against Hezbollah.
As the Lebanese parliamentary elections approach, there is growing talk of US support for organizations and personalities, most of whom are classified as so-called civil society organizations, according to Al-Ahd News Agency.
It is now almost no secret that Washington’s new project in Lebanon is to replace those Lebanese officials who have partially failed to confront Hezbollah with a new team called the Civic Groups.
To understand the growing efforts and activities of new organizations in Lebanon, it is possible to provide easy loans to some institutions and groups in Lebanon from US-affiliated sources.
In this regard, “David Shanker,” the then US Deputy Secretary of State for Middle East Affairs, says that the administration of the new US President Joe Biden seeks stability in Lebanon but is unconditionally unwilling to pay for and provide services to the country, in fact, Shanker explicitly stated that any US assistance to Lebanon would not be unconditional, and everyone knows that the American conditions in Lebanon have nothing to do with reform in that country, but with the security of Washington’s ally, the Zionist regime.
According to David Shanker, Lebanon’s complex crises could get even worse.
In a statement to the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on “The Middle East and North Africa and Global Counter-Terrorism,” he said that the International Monetary Fund’s aid program to Lebanon would most likely not exceed $ 5 billion, it will be paid gradually, in accordance with the commitments made by the Lebanese government. It should also be noted that the International Monetary Fund’s assistance cannot save Lebanon; rather, it will take decades to improve the situation in Lebanon at best.
The then US Deputy Secretary of State predicted in his remarks that holders of bank deposits in Lebanon will face more problems, which will increase the likelihood that the security situation will explode, leading to increased frustration and hunger in the country, which will lead to an increase in violence, and also the alliance between the Lebanese will also be affected, and the Lebanese institutions, including the security services, will be most concerned about this.
The US official went on to address the Lebanese army and US demands, acknowledging that one of the US government’s goals in supporting the Lebanese army is to keep it away from Hezbollah.
David Shanker went so far as to speak openly about the political situation in the country in exchange for this support for the Lebanese army: Washington must continue to support the Lebanese army to a high standard, and the Biden administration must participate in the process of increasing US funding to remove senior Hezbollah-loyal officers from the Lebanese army.
Also, creating a gap between the nation and the army on the one hand, and the army and Hezbollah on the other, is one of the old American tactics in Lebanon, which, of course, has failed many times. According to Shankar, there are some voices inside Lebanon who, in line with US policies, are beginning to tell stories about Hezbollah’s domination of army officers and its interference in the judiciary. All of these claims are made in some US-affiliated domestic media and then translated and published in foreign media.
But here is a warning and talk about some US policy makers in Lebanon, including the media, politicians and artists, and so on, to understand this danger, we must listen carefully to Shanker’s remarks that Washington must continue to engage and support Lebanese domestic actors, especially those with pro-US positions, the United States, meanwhile, is helping to alleviate human suffering in Lebanon and, on the other hand, continues to target Hezbollah financially.
The US plans come at a time when Lebanon is in a state of economic, financial and monetary collapse, and Washington is trying to worsen the plight of the Lebanese and then use it against Hezbollah.
Accordingly, from the current stage until the parliamentary elections, Lebanon will witness the implementation of a large number of programs in the form of festivals by some civil society figures who try to provoke Lebanese citizens who are experiencing difficult economic pressures with some slogans; Programs with a humanitarian appearance, such as distributing masks and hygiene items and creating blood donation campaigns, etc., which, of course, will be carried out with high media coverage and in line with US policies and under the supervision of this country and its members inside Lebanon.