Posted on 12/23/2011 3:22:07 PM PST by SunkenCiv
The blacked-out sport utility vehicles entered the small mountain village of Arsal, in the furthest reaches of Lebanon's Beqaa Valley, at midnight on a cold night late last month. The mostly Sunni residents of the town immediately knew what was happening: Hezbollah had come to grab someone from his bed.
The target appears to have been a Syrian relative of the dominant local tribe, the Qarqouz, who had taken refuge in the village, which lies just a few miles from the Syrian border. With close families ties on both sides of the line, as well as a central government presence that doesn't even live up to the designation of "weak," the tribes make little distinction between Syria and Lebanon, and many make their livings plying that most cliché of all Beqaa trades: cross-border smuggling.
...the raid by Hezbollah's internal security apparatus follows a pattern of harassment, kidnapping, and cross-border rendition of Syrian anti-regime activists by Syria's many loyalists in Lebanon, which also include rogue police units, pro-Syria political movements, and even Kurdish separatists...
The Arsal incursion, however, did not go how Hezbollah planned. The men in black trucks didn't impress the residents of Arsal: True to their reputation as a flinty bunch, the tribes immediately sent out men bedecked with the ubiquitous accessories of any respectable Beqaa smuggler -- the AK-47 and rocket propelled grenade launcher -- and ambushed the convoy before it could lay hands on the purported Syrian fugitive.
(Excerpt) Read more at foreignpolicy.com ...
The Hizzies got capped by the Lebanese locals, who accused them of being in league with Zionists and Syria’s Assad.
Yes, that’s right, they make no sense.
At least they shoot straight.
My thanks to the moderator — that picture, though beautiful, turned out to be Getty, so I turned myself in. :’)
Merry Christmas, all!
Except for the jokers from Righthaven — may they [self-censored wish so heinous, even I blushed].
Hezbollah is not nearly as powerful outside of their turf (they cannot take advantage of all the underground tunnels, etc.)
Muzzies shooting up muzzies who were trying to cap muzzies. I’m trying to figure the downside here . . .
Oh! There isn’t one!
The nice thing about Muzzie civil wars? Everybody wins.
If you’d like to be on or off, please FR mail me.
..................
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.