Hezbollah: The terrorist threat on the horizon
Jewish World Review ^ | 2-17-05 | George Friedman
 

As the maneuvering over Iraq continues, the Iranians and the Syrians made an interesting move. They have renewed an old alliance, which dates back to the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s. Iranian Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref met with Syrian Prime Minister Naji al-Otariand on Feb. 16 and declared a "common front" against the United States.

What this united front actually means is unclear, to say the least. On the surface, it appears to be the Coalition of the Trapped. The Syrians are surrounded by three enemies: Israel, Turkey and the United States. The Iranians are in a better position, but they also are fairly isolated militarily. What the two, taken together, can achieve is unclear.

The concern of the Syrians is obvious. Their number one interest is to maintain their enormous influence in Lebanon. This is a financial as well as strategic issue. The Syrians make a load of money doing business in Lebanon and they don't want to be replaced by foreign businessmen. On Feb. 14, a suicide bombing killed former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Al-Hariri. The universal suspicion is that the Syrians were behind it. The Syrians were afraid that Hariri, whose wealth made him one of the most powerful men in Lebanon, was trying to pry loose of Syrian control. The thinking is that the Syrians took him out, possibly using the Iranian-controlled Hezbollah.

Iran is also facing a fundamental challenge to its interests in Iraq.
 

(Excerpt) Read more at cweb.jewishworldreview.com ...