Who Killed Wissam al-Hassan?
General Wissam al-Hassan, head of the information branch of the Lebanese Internal Security Forces (ISF), was murdered in a car bombing in the Beirut neighborhood of Achrafieh on Friday, October 19.
The killing of al-Hassan was almost certainly carried out by the Syrian regime or elements associated with it. It has been met with a furious response by the Sunni community in Lebanon, who sympathize overwhelmingly with the cause of the Syrian rebels.
Yet currently, the indications are that the Syrian civil war is not yet set to erupt with full force into Lebanon.
Rather, the strength of the Hizballah movement looks sufficient for now to make the Lebanese opponents of Assad continue to bide their time. But if the Assad regime continues to grow weaker, a moment will come when the balance of forces in Lebanon will have shifted sufficiently to make a head on confrontation with Hizballah feasible. At that point, fighting in Lebanon is likely between Hizballah and its Sunni opponents.
Why have opponents of the Assad regime asserted so swiftly and with such confidence that Damascus was behind the murder of General al-Hassan?
There are a number of reasons. First, terror killings of this kind have long been an unmistakable item in the toolbox of options maintained by the Assad regime for preserving its influence and terrorizing its opponents in Lebanon.
For example, Syrian occupying forces were withdrawn from Lebanon following the car bomb murder of Rafik Hariri, in 2005, a murder for which Damascus’s Hizballah allies have now been accused by UN investigators of having been responsible.
A wave of assassinations targeting anti-Assad politicians, security officials, and journalists followed the withdrawal. The list of those who met a similar fate to that suffered by Wissam al-Hassan is long. Gebran Tueni, Samir Kassir, Georges Hawi, Antoine Ghanem, Wissam Eid, and Pierre Amine Gemayel — anti-Syrian figures all — met similar deaths in the 2005-2008 period.
Then, following the triumph of Hizballah in the mini-civil war of May, 2008, these killings stopped as abruptly as they started. The campaign of terror had worked and so could be wound down.
Secondly, Al-Hassan was part of the only branch of the Lebanese security services which is independent of the influence of Hizballah and Damascus. While Military Intelligence and the Surete Generale are thoroughly penetrated by these elements, the ISF is associated with the opposition, pro-Western March 14 movement.
This has made membership in the top levels of the ISF a hazardous position to occupy in recent years. Wissam Eid, whose name is noted above, was a senior ISF officer who was investigating Hizballah’s role in the Hariri killing when he was killed.
I guess I don’t buy this line of reasoning at all.
Assad is in the fight of his life and the very last thing he needs is to arouse the anti-Assad forces in Lebanon and in Turkey.
Who benefits if Turkey enters the Syrian conflict?? Well, NOT Assad; so why would his forces be tossing shells / mortars into Turkey?? Those who benefit most if Turkey enters the conflict, and thus ensuring that Assad is deposed would be the “rebels” and of course, the ISLAMIST TERRORISTS.
When Assad falls – a sure thing if Turkey enters the war – their will be absolute chaos in Syria and, as history has repeatedly demonstrated, the group most organized, most persistent and most ruthless will dominate.
We all know which group that is – the Islamist terrorist radicals.
Al-Hassan’s murder in Lebanon would also surely be advantageous to the Islamist radicals as well. It would set off the traditional enemies in Lebanon killing each other, once again, and weakening both while the Islamist Radicals save their energy.
As for the bombing having the “signature” of Assad’s thugs, well, EVERYBODY IN THAT REGION that is in the terrorist bombing business KNOWS how to make a bomb to appear that a specific group set off the bomb. Surely the Islamist terrorists know everything needed to make a bombing-murder “look” like a typical Assad-bombing-murder.
The Al Qaeda / Muslim Brotherhood , etc., muslim terrorists are the BEST organized of the all the factions, and they know it. All they need do is generate greater and greater chaos, confusion, etc., and they will take the entire enchilada.
REZKO, OBAMA, AND THE NADHMI AUCHI RAILROAD LINKING CHICAGO, WASHINGTON, AND BAGHDAD (Part 3 of 3)
http://illinoispaytoplay.com/2012/10/26/rezko-obama-and-the-nadhmi-auchi-railroad-linking-chicago-washington-and-baghdad-part-3-of-3/
Everything in this analysis fits like a glove.
It is also important to note, that although exacting revenge on Hizbullah and Syrian strongmen is essential, it is also intrinsic not to think of these groups too broadly – good Islamists vs bad Islamists.
In other words, http://adinakutnicki.com/2012/08/31/islamists-whatever-their-stripes-are-bloodthirsty-assads-butchers-his-opponents-too-six-of-onehalf-dozen-of-another-addendum-toislam-blood-commentary-by-adina-kutnicki/
We forget the above at our collective peril!
What I know of the modern history of Lebanon is that it was a beautiful, prosperous, democratic, and peaceful country until intolerant Muslims initiated the Civil War in the mid 1970′s to seize power from the slightly minority Christians.
Since then life in Lebanon has been h=dreadful and it has been a haven for various terrorist organizations.
If the Lebanese Sunni’s want to re-establish a prosperous and respected Lebanon, they will need to re-engage the Christians and recognize Israel.
I foresee only death and destruction otherwise.