BEYOND THE DROPZONE

PHARES: Bombings in Lebanon and Syria are part of a Master Campaign

Posted by W. Thomas Smith Jr. on 29 September 2008 at 1:13 pm UTC

By W. Thomas Smith Jr.

A car-bomb targeting Lebanese soldiers exploded in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli, this morning. Five people were killed and scores wounded in today’s attack which was carried out less than two months after a similar attack in the same city, and two days following a powerful car-bomb attack in the Syrian capital, Damascus.

The attacks – coinciding with the recent strengthening of Syrian Army forces on the northern Lebanese-Syrian border (and various unconfirmed reports of Syrian special operators who have perhaps been crossing into Lebanon since at least early September) – may well be a coordinated effort fitting into a broader plan for Lebanon on the part of the Syrian-Iranian-Hezbollah axis.

Dr. Walid Phares, director of the Future of Terrorism Project at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, tells us:

“What we are now witnessing is a rapid unfolding of the Syro-Iranian terror campaign aimed at achieving several interconnected goals.

“The explosions in Lebanon are aimed at intimidating the Lebanese Army, the public, the politicians; and pressure all to accept an increasing role for Hezbollah and Syria within the country’s security apparatus. It is interesting to see the back-and-forth between the terror attacks against the Army and the statements made by Hezbollah and pro-Syrian politicians calling for a defense strategy to ‘protect Lebanon’: As if the message is: ‘You will continue to be attacked until we are in charge of security.’

“On the other hand, security related incidents and bomb attacks inside Syria appear to be sending a parallel message. The regime is eager to call itself a ‘target of terrorism.’ Hence, the accusation is now leveled at so-called factions inside Lebanon, meaning the mostly Sunni anti-Syrian politicians. Which leads to Syria’s so-called legitimate action against an enemy based in Lebanon.

“If you look at the two tracks (the attacks and incidents in Lebanon and Syria) you’ll understand that it is all connected in a master campaign aimed at breaking Syria’s isolation on the one hand and then isolating the Lebanese anti-Syrian factions on the other. All of it is accompanied by a systematic media campaign out of Beirut which is heavily backed by Iranian petrodollars.â€�

Phares has just returned from a European tour where he briefed members of the European Parliament, counterterrorism officials at the European Union, and various international Defense officials.

— Visit W. Thomas Smith Jr. online at uswriter.com.

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